CONFERENCE SUMMARY:

Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center (FIAC) is hosting the “On Their Own: The 5th Annual Conference on Unaccompanied Immigrant Children” which will take place December 7-9 at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  FIAC previously hosted this conference in 2007 with great success.  FIAC is thrilled to be able to host this national conference again this year. 

The Conference offers an excellent opportunity for immigrant children’s advocates from across the nation to obtain advanced-level education and training on a diverse array of substantive topics.  The Conference encourages advocates from various parts of the country to network and share ideas, problems and solutions regarding many of the current issues impacting the lives of unaccompanied immigrant minors.  We anticipate members from not-for-profit legal services programs, private law firms, non-governmental organizations and government agencies to participate in this conference.

AGENDA:                                                                                                                                                                          (as of 11/10)

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 7^TH

1:00PM - 4:00PM                REGISTRATION

2:00PM - 3:30PM                PLENARY: WELCOME & OVERVIEW

                                               Speakers: FIAC

                                               PLENARY: LEGISLATIVE UPDATES & STRATEGY

                                               Speakers: Kristen Jackson (Public Counsel) &

                                               David Shahoulian (House  Judiciary Committee)

3:30PM - 4:00PM                BREAK

4:00PM - 5:30PM                ETHICS

                                               Speakers: Larry Katzman (Steptoe & Johnson) & Manoj Govandaiah (NIJC)

 

                                               TVPRA IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES AND GAPS

                                               Speakers: Elissa Steglich (AFSC) & Liz Frankel (University of Chicago)

  6:30PM                                DINNER ON YOUR OWN (meet at hotel lobby)

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 8^TH

8:00AM - 9:00AM                BREAKFAST

9:00AM - 10:30AM              POST-RELEASE: GAPS IN LEGAL REPRESENTATION

                                   Speakers: Sara McDowell (USCRI), Tanisha Bowens (CLINIC),

                                   Nathalie Lummert (USCCB) & Anne-Marie Mulcahy (KIND)

                                               COMPETENCY

                                              Speakers: Maria Woltjen (University of Chicago) & Sara Mehta (ACLU)

10:30AM - 11:00AM            BREAK

11:00AM - 12:30AM            T & U VISAS

                                              Speakers: Vivianna Stubbe (FIAC)

                                              CRIMINAL ISSUES                                    

                                              Speakers: Aryah Somers (The Door) & Katie Fleet (The Legal Aid Society)

12:30PM - 1:00PM             VERA INSTITUTE SESSION

1:00PM - 2:00PM                LUNCH

                                              PANEL: UNACCOMPANIED HAITIAN CHILDREN AFTER THE  EARTHQUAKE:

                                              OVERVIEW & DISCUSSION

                                              Speaker: Donald (DJ) Cannava, Esq (Department of Children & Families)

                                              Moderator: Aidil Oscariz (FIAC)

2:00PM - 3:30PM               SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE STATUS

                                              Speakers: FIAC & TBD

                                              SECURE & STAFF-SECURE

                                              Speakers: TBD

3:30PM - 3:45PM                BREAK

4:00PM - 6:00PM               PLENARY: ASYLUM: GANGS & DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

 

                                              Speakers: Lisa Frydman (Center for Gender and Refugee Studies) 

                                              & Jayne  Fleming (Reed Smith LLP)

6:15PM - 8:00PM                WINE & CHEESE RECEPTION 

 

 

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 9^TH

8:00AM - 9:00AM                BREAKFAST

9:00AM - 12:15PM             NATIONAL LITIGATION STRATEGIZING (by invitation only)

                                              Moderator:  Tania Galloni (FIAC)

                                              YOUTH DEVELOPMENT & RESILIENCY BUILDING FOR

                                              UNACCOMPANIED IMMIGRANT CHILDREN

                                              Moderator:  Etiony Aldarondo (University of Miami)

                                              TRAUMA RESOLUTION CENTER ACTIVITY

                                              Moderator:  Teresa Descilo (Trauma Resolution Center)

 12:15PM - 1:15PM            CLOSING EXERCISE & EVALUATION

                                              END OF CONFERENCE