Center for Migration Studies of New York

The Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS), established in 1964, is a research and policy institute that studies domestic immigration and international migration issues. With this award, CMS plans for a  conference that addresses the needs, challenges, and opportunities facing migrants and refugees in the United States at a time of rising nativism. The conference convenes scholars; current and former local, state, and federal officials; and representatives of immigrant and refugee communities to develop a research agenda to be pursued by CMS experts and other researchers. The resulting tools and publications inform future immigration law and policy.

The Center for Migration Studies (CMS), established in 1964, is a research and policy institute that studies domestic immigration and international migration issues. This grant supports a two-day conference in New York City in mid-2016 on the future of the global refugee protection system. The event’s focus is the protection of “crisis” migrants, broadly defined to encompass refugees, persons displaced by humanitarian crises, and other forced migrants that do not meet the narrow definition of refugee or fall within the mandate of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Foundation funding also supports a pre-conference planning meeting in Chicago with the project’s expert advisory group, a series of commissioned working papers, a special edition of an academic journal, and a policy brief. The project aims to contribute to meaningful commitments by governments and international agencies to strengthen protections for crisis migrants.

This general operating support grant to the Center for Migration Studies (CMS) will enable it to expand its programmatic activities and contribute to a nationwide planning effort around the implementation of an anticipated legalization program for undocumented immigrants. As part of its activities, CMS will assist legal aid and social service providers in expanding legal and social services to the undocumented population seeking lawful status. It will also hold a series of policy meetings with key civil society and government officials on timely immigration issues; upgrade its website; and enhance its dissemination capacity for events and publications.

This grant to the Center for Migration Studies (CMS) will develop research and information tools to assist governmental and non-governmental actors to plan for implementation of any future legalization program for undocumented immigrants. CMS will produce estimates of the unauthorized immigrant population in the United States at the state and sub-state level. It will also analyze which undocumented immigrants may be eligible for lawful status under current law, and develop outreach and marketing strategies to encourage eligible immigrants to seek lawful status. This project will facilitate the successful implementation of any future law allowing undocumented immigrants to regularize their status.

This grant to the Center for Migration Studies (CMS) will help to assess the impact of proposed comprehensive immigration reform legislation and the requirements for successful implementation of any new such law. CMS will convene a meeting of demographers, government officials, and policy makers to develop a research agenda related to the population that may be eligible to legalize their immigration status. The resulting state-specific information will inform policy makers and service providers on the demographic characteristics, economic contributions, and legal and social service needs of this population.