Call for Conference Workshop Proposals: 2012 National Refugee and Immigrant Conference: Issues and Innovations
Thursday, October 18, 2012-Friday, October 19, 2012 Chicago, Illinois
Soliciting Proposals from Professionals in
Pre-K-12 Education ~ Adult Education ~ Health Care ~ Marriage and Parenting Education
Family Support Services ~ Job Development ~ Refugee and Immigrant Services ~ Cultural Orientation
Capacity-Building ~ Community Organizations ~ Advocacy ~ Social Media
The aim of this national conference is to identify issues, emphasize best practices, and highlight innovations by providing those who work with refugees and immigrants an opportunity to learn from and to network with one another.
Families of refugees and immigrants in the U.S. must do their best to manage transitions into new communities. Many of these families encounter financial hardship, difficulty in gaining employment, cultural adjustments, health and mental issues, intergenerational conflicts, and the stresses of unfamiliar school experiences.
Services for preschool and K-12 refugee and immigrant youth and their families may be compromised by differing perceptions and misunderstandings (by both the families and those who provide services) concerning the cultural adjustment process; health, health care, and nutrition; public education enrollment and assessment, academic roles and expectations, the provision of bilingual education services and special education services, when appropriate; and American education law requirements.
To address these and other refugee and immigrant issues, individuals and nonprofit organizations need access to resources on successful practices and processes as well as solutions for challenges in refugee and immigrant integration.
Efforts to help youth and families will have a better chance of succeeding if they are based on shared understandings and collaborative partnerships among families, schools, health and mental health providers. In particular, as delineated in federal Title III of No Child Left Behind legislation, linking educators and families together can provide positive academic experiences and successful integration of refugee and immigrant children into our society.
Organizations also need to build their capacity to assist families by gaining resources through grant writing, and assisting adults to become self-sufficient in this economy through employment services and innovative practices such as microenterprise.
Please respond to the Call for Workshop Sessions with proposals for sessions that address these and related issues. Applications for respective sessions of interest to both new staff and experienced practitioners are sought. Proposals will be evaluated on the basis of clarity, relevance of content, replicability for other situations and programs, and interest to the conference audience. Please respond by May 31, 2012.
2012 Refugee and Immigrant Conference Committee
The Center/Adult Learning Resource Center
Chicago Public Schools
Heartland Alliance for Human Needs and Human Rights
Heartland Health Outreach
Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights
Illinois Department of Human Services
Illinois Department of Public Health
Illinois State Board of Education
Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago
Call for Workshop Proposals, continued 2012 Refugee and Immigrant Conference: Issues and Innovations
Presentation Ideas
If showcasing a program, discuss or show how the program could be replicated.
Education:
Preschool and K-12 Educational Issues for Refugee and Immigrant Students: developing dialogues among teachers of refugee students on best practices for integrating these students and their families into the American educational system including bilingual education program services and special education programs, where appropriate; providing early intervention for preschool students; newcomer services for primary, middle school, and high school students; educating teenage students with interrupted formal educations; encouraging career exploration and linkages to post-secondary educational opportunities
Adult Education Topics: adult literacy, family literacy, community integration, financial literacy
Family Life Education: strengthening refugee and immigrant families and facilitating productive cultural adjustment
Health Care:
Health Issues: health disparity, general concerns, healthcare reform, health promotion, health and nutrition education, women and children’s health, and accessing services for the disabled; ethical issues in refugee health care; strategies/models for increasing cultural competency among health care providers/pharmacists
Mental Health Issues: trauma-informed care, stress/depression/anxiety, family health, ethical issues in refugee mental health care, suicide risks; gang-related violence; and outreach and education efforts in refugee and immigrant communities with consideration of limited English among some populations
Family Support Services:
Multiple-risk Families: understanding and helping the most vulnerable: children with multiple risks from behavioral, emotional and health-related problems; effects of dislocation, including stress, suicide, gang violence and family disruptions
Employment: job development, job training, job placement; micro enterprise development
Capacity Building: grant writing, community collaboration, social media, advocacy, integration of service provision
Refugee Populations: emergent issues
Integrated Services:
Integrating Services and Networking among educators, counselors, and healthcare professionals to strengthen and improve responses to refugee and immigrant needs
Strategic Partnerships between families and service providers, emphasizing involvement, awareness and understanding
Issues of Citizenship & Immigration and Policy/Legislation/Updates: citizenship education, knowing your rights, immigration reform
Cultural Orientation: marriage/divorce practices, understanding school system/workplace, health practices, nuances of communication, relationships between the broader American community and immigrant and refugee populations
Types of Proposals Requested: Three Options
1. Workshop Session Proposal
Workshop sessions are a combination of presentations/audience interactions which include original problem statements and/or solutions. Presenters should include handout(s) for participants. Presentation length is 75 minutes.
2. Poster Session Proposal
Poster sessions are a way to communicate information from one professional to another through photos, illustrations, and items created by programs. Posters will be displayed in a conference breakout room. An eight-foot table will be provided. Along with a clearly designed display board, submitters should include handout(s) for viewers.
3. Video Theater Proposal
Video and digital media theater provides an opportunity to present VHS, DVD or other video media relevant to refugee and immigrant issues. The video should be the focus of the presentation, but include, at a minimum, opening remarks, closing comments, and handout(s). Only an LCD projector will be available in the video and digital media session room. Presenters must provide their own computers.
