Don't panic, collaborate! You’ll hear about this advice and more in episode one of this three-part series focused on considerations for child welfare and county workers who encounter families who are navigating the asylum process, are currently undocumented, or have mixed documentation status within the family. In this episode, you'll learn about local changes occurring in Minnesota by exploring a collaboration that occurred in 2023 in Hennepin County. You'll hear from school and county staff who faced the challenges of change by collaborating across sectors, learning from neighboring districts, and keeping their focus on relationships.

Episode 1: Working With Undocumented & Asylum-Seeking Families: Collaboration in Minnesota

Asylum is complex and can take a long time. Episode two of this three-part series does a deeper dive into the process of asylum in the United States. Hear about the different types of asylum, the requirements, and the challenges of legally acquiring status, as well as the avenues of support that are available for families. You'll hear from immigration attorney Sarah Brenes (Binger Center for New Americans, University of Minnesota Law School) about how the complexities of the asylum process can impact asylum-seeking families, the history of and recent changes to these processes, and what this means for child welfare professionals who work with these families.

Episode 2: Working With Undocumented & Asylum-Seeking Families: Understanding Asylum

Seeking asylum is an act of resilience and protection. This final episode of the three-part series focuses on the implications for direct practice social work with families who are seeking or navigating asylum. Amy Smith, Clinical Faculty and Director of Social Work Services at the Interprofessional Center for Counseling and Legal Services at the University of St. Thomas and Liz Franklin, Director of Behavioral Health at Comunidades Latinas Unidas en Servicio (CLUES), discuss how to join with families as a social worker, considerations for establishing and sustaining trust, contextualizing care, navigating benefits eligibility, and sustaining yourself as a social work practitioner.

Episode 3: Working With Undocumented & Asylum-Seeking Families: Considerations for Practice

The Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare (CASCW) is committed to connecting child welfare professionals to relevant and accessible training resources. We are excited to bring you the latest in research, policy, and practice via podcasts. This channel will cover a wide range of topics and will feature interviews with researchers, policy makers, frontline child welfare workers, community members, and many others. If you would like a transcript of any of our podcasts, please visit our website podcast page: https://cascw.umn.edu/podcasts/.

New tracks tagged #asylum-seeking