The Center on Immigration and Child Welfare Initiative (CICW) is a national peer membership organization that promotes the welfare of children of immigrants and their families. The Center fosters cross-sector collaboration by linking and supporting professionals across the child welfare, immigration, and legal fields.
Who We Are
The Center on Immigration and Child Welfare Initiative (CICW) was founded in 2006, an era of increasingly punitive immigration policies and programs that systematically separated families and threatened the foundations of child protection and well-being. For over fifteen years, the work of the CICW has focused on building the capacity of the U.S. child welfare system to respond to the unique needs of immigrant families and children through: (1) original research, (2) resource development and dissemination focused on the needs of frontline practitioners, (3) training and technical assistance (online and in person), and (4) national leadership, including sponsoring cross-sector conferences, workgroups, and advocacy.
Our History
In 2017, the directorship of the CICW—formerly the Migration and Child Welfare National Network—moved from the University of Houston to the New Mexico State University School of Social Work. With this change in leadership came a charge to revitalize and strengthen the work of the Center at this critical juncture in time. The move to its new home in the border state of New Mexico brought an opportunity to bring local groups grappling with child welfare and immigration issues to the table and engage state leaders and policy makers to improve the well-being of children in immigrant families in New Mexico.
In 2024, the directorship of the CICW moved to the UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare under the leadership of Dr. Kristina Lovato. This change in leadership brings new opportunities to build on the work of the Center during this pivotal time in our country’s social and political climate. In this new institutional home, the Center will address the most critical policy and practice challenges faced by immigrant families who intersect with the child welfare system, through research, advocacy, resource development, training, and technical support. Situated in the San Francisco Bay Area, a top destination for diverse immigrant communities; we look forward to developing new relationships with city, county, and state constituents, along with community-based organizations to improve the wellbeing of children in immigrant families who intersect with the child welfare system.
Learn More About the CICW
Our Mission
The mission of CICW is to improve programs and policies related to immigrant children and families involved in the public child welfare system.
Our Staff & Advisory Committee
The CICW Advisory Committee consists of national experts and leaders in the field of immigration and child welfare. The Advisory Committee sets the agenda of the Center and oversees the Center’s products and activities.
What We Do
The CICW strengthens and supports state and local agencies committed to the welfare of immigrant families and children involved in, or at risk of involvement in, the public child welfare system. We work collaboratively and in partnership with service providers, helping build capacity to promote positive outcomes for immigrant families and their children with regard to safety, permanency, and well-being.
Get Involved
The CICW offers a number of ways for professionals and students to get involved in the work of the Center toward the goal of building the capacities of the U.S. child welfare systems and the community organizations they partner with to respond to the unique needs of immigrant families and children.
