Resources

What You Need to Know Now About Public Charge

By | Federal Policy, Highlighted Resources, Law & Policy, Law/Policy Highlight, Legal/Law, Public Charge

What You Need to Know Now About Public Charge

Immigrant Legal Resource Center (July 21, 2026)

This community explainer answers frequently asked questions about DHS’s July 2026 removal of the 2022 Public Charge rule, including who it affects and when, now that green card applicants face less certainty without the structured guidance officers previously relied on.

Arguments for Using the SIJS-based Adjustment Provision to Adjust Based on a Different Petition

By | Immigration Relief, Legal Professionals, Legal/Law, Practice, Practice Highlight, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS)

Arguments for Using the SIJS-based Adjustment Provision to Adjust Based on a Different Petition

Immigrant Legal Resource Center (April 13, 2026)

This practice alert explores an untested legal argument that young people with approved SIJS petitions may be able to use SIJS-specific adjustment provisions to meet the “inspected and admitted or paroled” requirement when adjusting status through a non-SIJS immigrant petition, such as a spousal petition.

Family Preparedness Plan for Immigrant Families

By | Deportation, Detention, Family Separation, Immigration Enforcement, Practice, Practice Highlight, Youth & Families

Family Preparedness Plan for Immigrant Families

Kids in Need of Defense (March 11, 2026)

This family preparedness guide helps immigrant parents and caregivers plan for potential separation by organizing key documents, identifying trusted caregivers, and ensuring children are protected if a parent becomes unavailable.

ICE has detained more than 650 children in California under Trump’s deportation crackdown

By | In the News

ICE has detained more than 650 children in California under Trump’s deportation crackdown

Emma Gallegos, EdSource (July 16, 2026)

Under the second Trump administration, child detentions in California communities have risen sharply, with 61% of detained children deported—compared to 8% under Biden—while nationally, the number of children in ICE detention is ten times higher than in Biden’s final year.

Jayapal Introduces Orlin’s Law Calling for the Protection of Children of Immigrants

By | In the News

Jayapal Introduces Orlin’s Law Calling for the Protection of Children of Immigrants

Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (July 16, 2026)

Rep. Pramila Jayapal has introduced Orlin’s Law—named for a 3-year-old who was murdered after his mother was deported without him despite her request that he accompany her—demanding accountability from DHS and ICE as family separations continue.

ICE is arresting relatives who come forward to take custody of migrant children in federal shelters

By | In the News

ICE is arresting relatives who come forward to take custody of migrant children in federal shelters

Uriel J. García and Alex Nguyen, Texas Tribune (July 21, 2026)

A Honduran woman who spent nearly a year completing vetting requirements to sponsor her niece and nephew from federal shelter was arrested by ICE in the process—highlighting how the Trump administration’s changes to the sponsorship system are deterring relatives from coming forward to care for unaccompanied children.

New Public Charge Rule Threatens Children’s Access to Care and Essential Resources

By | In the News

New Public Charge Rule Threatens Children’s Access to Care and Essential Resources

Trudy Taylor Smith, Children’s Defense Fund (July 23, 2026)

A new DHS public charge rule taking effect September 18 is expected to deter immigrant families—including millions of eligible U.S. citizen children—from accessing healthcare, nutrition assistance, and other essential benefits they are legally entitled to receive.

Toward a typology of government-sanctioned child maltreatment: A scoping review of the harms of U.S. immigration enforcement

By | Child Maltreatment, Deportation, Detention, Immigrant Families Research, Immigration Enforcement, Research

Toward a typology of government-sanctioned child maltreatment: A scoping review of the harms of U.S. immigration enforcement

Child-Family Separation and Pathways to Reunification in the Context of U.S. Immigration Enforcement

By | Family Separation, Immigrant Families Research, Immigration Enforcement, Research

Child-Family Separation and Pathways to Reunification in the Context of U.S. Immigration Enforcement

Georgetown Collaborative on Global Children’s Issues (July 13, 2026)

This report examines how family separation is occurring across the U.S., identifies gaps in government data that hinder reunification efforts, and offers child- and family-centered policy and practice recommendations for protecting family unity while enforcing immigration law.

CICW Research Spotlight: Supporting Unaccompanied Immigrant Youth in Transition to Adulthood

By | Opportunities

CICW Research Spotlight: Supporting Unaccompanied Immigrant Youth in Transition to Adulthood

Institute for Research on Poverty (IRP) Emerging Scholars Program •  Brookings Institution • Washington, DC • May 27, 2026

Dr. Kristina Lovato presented her research, “Building the Capacity to Serve Unaccompanied Immigrant Transitional-Age Youth During the Transition to Adulthood from Out-of-Home Care,” as part of the Institute for Research on Poverty (IRP) Emerging Scholars Program at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC. The presentation highlighted challenges unaccompanied immigrant transition-age youth face navigating adulthood amid shifting federal policies, and offered recommendations for strengthening child welfare, legal, and community-based support systems in light of reduced protections, including the termination of Deferred Action for SIJ status holders.

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