A Day About Immigrants

Posted by on March 23, 2009

On Monday, April 13, Family Services and the Bryn Mawr College Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research will present a half-day conference, A Day About Immigrants.

Pre-registration is required.  To register, please send your full contact information and payment to the address below.  Please make checks payable to Family Services.

Family Service
3125 Ridge Pike
Eagleville, PA  19403

For more information on this half-day conference, please call Family Services at 610-630-2111 ext. 238.

Effective work with immigrants begins with an understanding of their legal status and how that status can impact physical/mental health, health care, education, and virtually every aspect of life. Speakers will address how we are all impacted by and can advocate for legislative and policy changes with advocacy tools for the social service/medical/legal/educational communities, as well as relevant opportunities for applying this knowledge in a professional setting.

Participants will gain knowledge and awareness to better understand the latest aspects of the immigration debate; discuss how service providers are impacted by existing/emerging policies; learn applicable theories for practice with and advocacy for immigrants; and explore ways to identify the needs of special populations such as refugees, women, children, unaccompanied minors, LGBT, and elderly immigrants.

Keynote speaker Fernando Chang‐Muy, J.D. is the Thomas A. O’Boyle Lecturer in Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. He teaches Immigration Law, Refugee Law, and Law and Social Work. He was the founding director of the Liberty Center for Survivors of Torture; a program officer at The Philadelphia Foundation; and coordinator of the Emma Lazarus Collaborative.

Panelists
Larry Fiebert, LCSW, BCD is the primary researcher and author of Koreans and Asian Indians in the North Penn Area – A Needs Assessment Report. He has over 25 years of experience as a psychotherapist working with individuals and couples. He is the Associate Executive Director at Family Services of Montgomery County, where he is responsible for grant writing and program development.

Susmita Pati, MD, MPH is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Department of Pediatrics at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Medicine. She specializes in health services research with a focus on investigating the impact of public policy on the health of underserved children and families.

Dr. Denise Berté is a clinical psychologist that provides forensic and therapeutic services to survivors of torture and war trauma. Her areas of expertise include anxiety disorders related to war trauma and torture. She is the director of the Liberty Center for Survivors of Torture and Clinical Director at Lutheran Children and Family Services.

Len Rieser, J.D. is Co‐Director of the Education Law Center, a statewide advocacy organization that focuses on problems of quality and equity in Pennsylvania’s public education system, especially for poor children, children of color, children with disabilities, and culturally and linguistically diverse children. Mr. Rieser has been at the Law Center since 1982; before that, he was an attorney with the Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice. He graduated from the University of Chicago Law School in 1976.

Date: Monday, April 13, 2009
Time: 8:30 a.m. – Noon
Location: Bryn Mawr College Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research
300 Airdale Road, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010

Cost: Standard Rate—$ 75.00 Non‐Profit Rate—$ 50.00 Student with ID—Free

Social Work with Immigrants and Refugees: Legal Issues, Clinical Skills and Advocacy edited by Mr. Chang‐Muy and Koreans and Asian Indians in the North Penn Area – A Needs Assessment Report by Mr. Fiebert will be available for purchase.

—Important Registration Information—
Please register early, as space is limited. If you are a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, or Licensed Professional Counselor in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, you are eligible to receive 3 Continuing Education Credits. (Request forms on site.) If you are a licensed attorney, you are eligible to receive 3 Continuing Legal Education Credits. (Request forms on site.) Scholarships are available to individuals and non‐profit organizations.