Working with Immigrant Families with Young Children – Promoting Resiliency in the Face of Trauma, Loss, and Fear with Carmen Rosa Noroña, LCSW, MS Ed, CEIS, Ivys Fernandez-Pastrana, JD, and Kara Hurvitz, JD, MSW. The Early Childhood Conference, Boston Psychoanalytic Society and Institute (BPSI), recorded on May 18, 2019. In English, with Spanish sub-titles.
The program is aimed at early childhood educators and clinicians who work with young immigrant children and families who have been impacted by immigration trauma. Our panel of three experts addresses the emotional and social impact of immigration, provides an overview of recent immigration policy changes, and discusses the traumatic nature of threat of separation or forcible separation on the development and well-being of young children. They focus on developmentally appropriate and trauma- informed tools that educators and clinicians can use to help children express their emotions in ways that increase feelings of safety, empowerment, and hope. They will also address strategies to support providers who suffer from the impact of secondary trauma and stress, frequently brought about by their work with immigrant families.
Carmen Rosa Noroña, LCSW, MS Ed, CEIS (Presenter) is from Ecuador where she trained and practiced as a clinical psychologist. For more than 25 years, Carmen Rosa has provided clinical services to young children and their families in early intervention, home-based and out-patient programs. She is the child trauma clinical services and training lead at Child Witness to Violence Project and is the associate director of the Boston Site Early Trauma Treatment Network at Boston Medical Center. She is a Child-Parent Psychotherapy National Trainer, a DC: 0-5 faculty member and a co-developer of the Harris Professional Development Network Diversity-Informed Tenets for Infants, Children, and Families Initiative. Her interests include the impact of trauma on attachment; the intersection of culture, immigration, and trauma; diversity-informed reflective supervision; and the implementation of evidence- based practices in real work settings. She is a co-chair of the Culture Consortium of the National Child Traumatic Stress network, and has adapted and translated materials for Spanish speaking families affected by trauma. Carmen Rosa is also a Board member of the MA Association of Infant Mental Health, a co-author of the Family Preparedness Plan for immigrant families facing detention or deportation due to their immigration status.
Ivys Fernandez-Pastrana, JD (Presenter) is originally from Puerto Rico and is a lawyer by training. She is the Program Manager for the Pediatric Navigations Program at Boston Medical Center where she works alongside a team of Family Navigators and Community Health Advocates in the Department of Pediatrics. She has a background working in special education and with families whose children are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders. She works with parents and families to help them navigate and access community resources as well as governmental entitlements and benefits.
Kara Hurvitz, JD, MSW (Presenter) is a staff attorney in the Medical Legal Partnership of Boston (MLPB) serving the Department of Pediatrics at Boston Medical Center. Prior to joining MLPB, Kara worked as a Social Services Advocate at the Committee
