October 31, 2019
October 2019 Issue
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Protecting Cross Border Families at our "Beyond Separation" Conference and Training Day
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International Social Service, USA (ISS-USA)
hosted their
7
th
Annual Conference
, Beyond Separation: Protecting Cross Border Families,
on October 17
th
and 18
th
, 2019 at the
University of Maryland Baltimore
. The conference drew participants and speakers from the fields of social work, international child protection, family and immigration law, human rights and public policy, among others. The two day event highlighted the need for legal, judicial, social service, and advocacy professionals to work together to protect the long term safety and well-being of children separated from their families.
Thursday’s training session provided skill-building workshops that covered four key stages in managing cross border cases, from identifying family, engaging with them domestically and internationally, assessing their caregiving capacity and preparing them for reunification. Friday’s panel sessions built off these themes and were titled,
Children on the Move: A Big Picture Look at International Family Separation, Finding Common Ground: Legal and Social Work Cooperation in the Best Interest of Children, Partners in Protection: The Role of Public and Private Partners in Supporting
and
Reuniting Families
and
Lessons from the Field: Best Practices in Repatriation and Reintegration.
Throughout workshops on Thursday and panel sessions on Friday, conference attendees were reminded of challenges facing children and families separated by borders, as well as those faced by the systems and service providers working to support them. Participants were also presented with opportunities for collaboration to help overcome those barriers. Speakers referenced the need for more training with social service and legal providers on what services are available and how to access them, better tracking and data management to prevent children from getting lost as they enter and move through protection systems, and more robust policy solutions to hold public entities accountable to all children in their care, regardless of family background or circumstance of separation. Improving long term outcomes for children requires a holistic approach to child welfare challenges that build on collaboration and partnerships.
If you would like more information on the 2019 conference, or how your agency can work with
ISS-USA
, please contact
fnorthcott@iss-usa.org
. If you are interested in participating in future training opportunities, please contact
eweisman@iss-usa.org
.
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TCS New York Marathon Runner Team Spotlight:
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A few of our runners are still trying to reach their goal of raising $2,620 before the race this Sunday. By donating to
the
Team ISS-USA charity runners
, you're supporting our mission to
connect vulnerable children, adults, and families, separated by an international border, to the services and support they need.
To learn more about the services ISS-USA provides to vulnerable children and families separated by international borders, check out our
services
page.
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"A Goal Within Reach: Ending The Institutionalization Of Children To Ensure No One Is Left Behind" Conference
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The conference brought global leaders together to discuss the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and focused on the millions of vulnerable and institutionalized children around the world who are at risk of being left behind in the process. Leaders were encouraged to collaborate and consider solutions for the prominent issues that are pressing institutionalization.
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Check Out Our October Blog!
With all the free information readily available to us online, what benefits does the in-person professional conference offer?
To learn about our top three reasons why attending a conference is still a great professional move, read our
October blog!
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Eating Pupusas for A Purpose:
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On
Wednesday, November 13th from 2:00 - 3:30pm ET
,
ISS-USA's
Dr. Felicity Sackville Northcott, PhD and Elaine Weisman, LMSW/MPH along with the
Child Welfare League of America (CWLA)'s
Julie Collins, MSW/LCSW will discuss strategies of engagement, inclusion, and assessment
when a child in care has family resources in another state or country.
The webinar will address specifics on how to identify children in your care who have a family resource in another state or country;
find, engage, and assess these families;
plan concurrently for reunification in the U.S. or placement in another country; transfer and/or retaining legal custody; and navigate post-placement follow-up and reintegration services.
Click here
to reserve your webinar seat. There is a $20 fee for CEUs for non-members and a $10 fee for CWLA members. If you are interested in receiving CEUs, please e-mail
memberservices@cwla.org
for details.
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Join the Movement & Give Back With
#ISSUSAGIVES
This year,
#GivingTuesday
,
the global day of giving, will be held on December 3rd. This global event allows everyone to give back after the U.S. retail sales on Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday.
As participants in
#GivingTuesday
, ISS-USA is encouraging individuals to act as advocates for the mobilization of our global social service network by making a
donation
between now and December 3rd.
Save the Date and Make a Contribution Today:
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Attention social workers in MICHIGAN,
NEW HAMPSHIRE, IOWA, KENTUCKY and INDIANA:
we want to hear from you!
ISS-USA is looking for social workers to complete occasional assessments with families in your state. We will provide you with guidance throughout the work and you will help us directly serve families who are seeking to care for their relative children in another state or country. Check out the description
here
. Please contact Elaine Weisman at
eweisman@iss-usa.org
for more information.
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The International Social Service Network is Recruiting!
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