Through this annual symposium, the Children’s Immigration Law Academy (CILA) facilitates learning about working with children who entered the U.S. unaccompanied and to spotlight and celebrate the amazing work being done by fellow advocates across the country.

As the largest not-for-profit immigration legal services provider in Texas and advocate for the human and legal rights of unaccompanied children, RAICES is slated to host two panels as part of this year’s convening:

• Companions Throughout the Journey: The Importance of Incorporating Re-screening During the Entire Span of an Unaccompanied Child’s Case
  
  In our work with unaccompanied children, direct legal and social service providers often accompany immigrant youth through a variety of life changes — including advancing through the U.S. educational system, facing housing and food insecurities, becoming a young adult, entering the workforce, and engaging in new and adult relationships — that may alter the client’s eligibility for immigration relief. As such, providers must meet clients where they are in their journeys, continually making space to re-screen them for different forms of relief that previously were not identified in their cases. Panelists will explore why creating space for re-screening is essential, why clients might benefit from pursuing multiple forms of relief, and how to make re-screening a sustainable practice.
  
  RAICES participants include Hannah Eash-Gates, Alysa Medina, Cecily Montgomery, and Diana Tafur. They will be joined by Maira Herrera from Kids in Need of Defense (KIND).
  
  

• Using Litigation as a Legal Strategy Tool when the System Fails
  
  Leveraging successful examples including Garcia Ramirez v. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and ImmDef v. Department of Homeland Security, the panel will highlight the importance of incorporating litigation into practitioners' immigration practice as a tool to advance the rights of unaccompanied immigrant children. Panelists will explore the importance of incorporating litigation as a tool in advancing the rights of immigrant children; different types of litigation claims; how to identify and document patterns of injustice that could be elevated to litigators; and, once litigation action has commenced, whether and how the role of the immigration attorney changes.
  
  RAICES participants include Yvette Changuin, Gardner Lange, and Diana Tafur. They will be joined by Gianna Borroto from American Immigration Council.