DALLAS, TX — November 15, 2024—Catholic Charities Dallas (CCD) has received a $15,000 grant from the Texas Bar Foundation, which will fund vital immigration representation services for children in foster care across Dallas County.
Since its inception in 1965, the Texas Bar Foundation has awarded more than $28 million in grants to law-related programs. Supported by members of the State Bar of Texas, the Texas Bar Foundation is the nation’s largest charitably funded bar foundation.
This funding will allow the organization to offer free legal services to minors in state custody who face significant barriers to obtaining permanent immigration status, a critical step in their adoption process.
In partnership with the Dallas County Child Protection and Permanency Court, Catholic Charities Dallas will provide direct immigration representation services to foster children who are unable to secure counsel through other means. The legal assistance will help these children pursue immigration relief, a crucial step in allowing their adoption cases to proceed in family court.
The Dallas County Child Protection and Permanency Court reached out to Catholic Charities Dallas in FY24 to address a critical need for pro bono legal services for minors in state custody who lack immigration representation. Many of these children are eligible for immigration relief but do not have access to the necessary legal resources. The absence of permanent immigration status has long been a significant obstacle to finalizing their adoption cases in family court.
With this funding, Catholic Charities Dallas plans to hire a part-time legal assistant to support the DOJ Fully Accredited Representative from Catholic Charities Dallas who is currently handling these cases. The accredited representative will attend family court permanency hearings, provide updates on the minors’ immigration status, and submit all necessary filings to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Additionally, the representative will be available to represent the children in Dallas Immigration Court should any defensive matters arise. The legal assistant will assist with document preparation and ensure timely follow-ups with the minors, their foster families, and USCIS to keep cases on track.
This representative will work closely with the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), foster parents, and the Dallas County Child Protection and Permanency Court to ensure that children and their caregivers are fully informed of their rights and options under the law. The staff will be culturally competent and trauma-informed, providing sensitive and respectful support to some of the most vulnerable children in our community.
Catholic Charities Dallas will also utilize its case management system, eImmigration, to securely track and manage all client documentation and deadlines related to each case. The organization will also maintain open communication with DFPS staff, foster families, and family court to ensure the timely resolution of cases.
“This grant-funded initiative addresses a crucial gap in legal services for foster children in Dallas County, as no other non-profit organization in the area currently provides this type of immigration legal assistance,” said Dave Woodyard, CEO of Catholic Charities Dallas.
Catholic Charities Dallas will begin accepting new cases referred by DFPS immediately and looks forward to collaborating with the court and child welfare agencies to remove the immigration-related barriers that have long hindered foster children’s ability to secure permanent homes.
For more information, please contact Aubree Auletta, Director of Marketing & Communications, aauletta@ccdallas.org.
###
About Catholic Charities Dallas
CCD is an independent, 501(c)3 non-profit organization and one of the leading social service providers in the greater Dallas region. We educate, serve and empower more than 200,000 clients in need annually across a nine-county region of North Texas, addressing the root causes of poverty and homelessness. A large multi-disciplinary agency, CCD provides services in the following core areas: hunger alleviation through boxed food pantries, client choice pantries and mobile community pantries; early childhood education; low-income elderly supports; permanent supportive housing for homeless elderly; immigration legal resources; pregnancy, parenting and adoption counseling; refugee resettlement; shelter and foster care for unaccompanied refugee and immigrant minors; financial coaching and career development assistance; disaster preparedness and relief; community relations, advocacy and more. For more information, see www.ccdallas.org.
