History

BRYCS was formed in 2001 as a collaboration between the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops/Migration and Refugee Services (USCCB/MRS) and Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS), who have partnered for over 35 years in our work on behalf of refugee children and families. In 2006, BRYCS became a project of USCCB/MRS.

BRYCS was conceived as a bridge between service providers aiding refugees and public child welfare professionals in the United States. In 2001, a Middle Eastern refugee family, resettled in the U.S., had their six children removed by child protective services after the parents disciplined their teenager according to the customs of their native country. Cultural differences regarding childrearing practices, discipline methods, appropriate adolescent behavior, and intergenerational expectations were central to the case.

In desperation, the parents ultimately traveled to Washington, D.C., to seek the intervention of the U.S. President in getting the children returned to their home.

The experience of this refugee family, and others like them, led the Federal Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) to initiate a national technical assistance program focused on refugee child welfare, which became Bridging Refugee Youth and Children’s Services (BRYCS). Since its beginning, BRYCS has conducted national needs assessments, cross-service trainings and roundtable discussions; presented workshops at hundreds of conferences; consulted on numerous complex cases; and responded to thousands of technical assistance requests.

BRYCS now serves all those assisting refugee children, youth, and families in the U.S., including: refugee resettlement programs; ethnic community based organizations; public child welfare agencies; public school systems; family strengthening programs; and youth services.

Since its formation, BRYCS has:

• Conducted cross-service trainings in communities like Atlanta, GA; St. Louis, MO; and Phoenix, AZ.
• Provided over 300 technical assistance consultations and 30-40 presentations at conferences nation-wide each year.
• Developed a national technical assistance network of experts in refugee child welfare based in high-immigration states.
• Developed the only Web site and Clearinghouse devoted to migration and child welfare containing thousands of catalogued resources.
• Produced over a hundred resources, including Toolkits on 1) Parenting; 2) Positive Youth Development; 3) Child Care; 4) Child Welfare; and 5) Schools, and an illustrated guide to raising children in a new country.
• Developed a database of Promising Practices documenting successful initiatives nation-wide.
• Published interviews with refugee parents about their experiences parenting in their country of origin and in the U.S., with discussion exercises to help providers understand cultural issues and additional resources.
• Held national roundtable discussions, including “Refugee Children in the Public Foster Care System”, “Enhancing State Child Welfare Services for Migrating Children”, and “Brighter Futures for Migrating Children: An Overview of Current Trends and Promising Practices in Child Welfare”.

In 2007 BRYCS was asked to implement a child welfare training program for the over 50 programs funded by ORR’s Division of Unaccompanied Children’s Services, and in the fall of 2008 BRYCS began delivering technical assistance to ORR’s Refugee School Impact Grant (RSIG) recipients.

The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC) honored BRYCS in 2009 with their Award for the Advancement of Cultural Competency in Child Maltreatment Prevention and Intervention.

As BRYCS moves forward, the project will continue collaborating with partners to “bridge the gap” between mainstream social service providers and refugee and immigrant-serving agencies.

Learn more about BRYCS’ mission!