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Immigrant Family Mental Health Advocacy Program
Community-Engaged Research
We apply socioecological frameworks to understand the role and interplay of factors that impact the health and well-being of children in immigrant families. We aim to identify community-driven models of mental health promotion that:
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Support community workforce capacity
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Center community knowledge and voice
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Elevate the contributions of non-specialty service settings
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Allow for new approaches to service delivery and knowledge exchange
Selected Publications
Ford-Paz, R., Torres, S., Rusch, D., St. Jean, N. & Salusky, I. (2026). Structural violence and the mental
health of asylum-seeking minors: A retrospective directed content analysis. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/ort0000915
Mehta, T.G., Atkins, M.S., Gustafson, E.L., Rusch, D., & Watling Neal, J. (2025). Applying lessons learned
from public health crises to expand peer support specialists in youth mental health services. NPJ Mental Health Research, 4(1), 58. doi:10.1038/s44184-025-00170-6.
Suarez‐Balcazar, Y., Buckingham, S., Rusch, D. B., Charvonia, A., Young, R. I., Lewis, R. K., ... & Perez, C. M.
(2024). Reproductive justice for Black, Indigenous, Women of Color: Uprooting race and colonialism. American Journal of Community Psychology, 73(1-2), 159-169.
Galvan, T., Rusch, D., Domenech Rodriguez, M.M., & Garcini, L.M. (2022). Familias Divididas [Divided
families]: The impacts of transnational family separation on the health of undocumented Latinx immigrants. Journal of Family Psychology, 36(4), 513–522. doi:10.1037/fam0000975
M., Castro, V.P., King,E., & Olson, B. (2021). Statement on the roles of settings in supporting immigrants’ resistance to injustice and oppression: A Policy Statement by the Society for Community Research and Action: Division 27 of the American Psychological Association. American Journal of Community Psychology, 68(3-4), 269-291. doi:10.1002/ajcp.12515
communities. Community Psychology: Social Justice Through Collaborative Research and Action.
Read More
Rusch, D., Walden, A.L., & DeCarlo Santiago, C. (2020). A community-based organization model to
promote Latinx immigrant mental health through advocacy skills and universal parenting supports. American Journal of Community Psychology [Special Issue: Applying Community-Based Participatory Approaches to Addressing Health Disparities and Promoting Health Equity], 66(3-4), 337-346. doi:10.1002/ajcp.12458.
Mehta, T., Lakind, D., Rusch, D., Walden, A., Cua, G., & Atkins, M.S. (2019). Collaboration with urban
community stakeholders: Revising paraprofessional-led services to promote positive parenting. American Journal of Community Psychology [Special issue: Understanding and Strengthening the Child- and Youth-Serving Workforce in Low-Resource Communities], 63(3-4), 444-458. doi:10.1002/ajcp.12316
Ford-Paz, R.E., DeCarlo Santiago, C., Coyne, C.A., Rivera, C., Guo. S., Rusch, D., St. Jean, N., Hilado, A., &
Cicchetti, C. (2019). You Are Not Alone: A public health response to immigrant/refugee distress in the current sociopolitical context. Psychiatric Services, 17(S1), 128–138. doi:10.1037/ser000038.1
Gustafson, E., Atkins, M.S., & Rusch, D. (2018). Community health workers and social proximity:
Implementation of a parenting program in urban poverty. American Journal of Community Psychology, 62 (3-4), 449-463. doi:10.1002/ajcp.12274.
(2018). Statement on the effects of deportation and forced separations on immigrants, their families, and communities. A Policy Statement by the Society for Community Research and Action: Division 27 of the American Psychological Association. American Journal of Community Psychology, 62, 3-12. doi:10.1002/ajcp.12256
Publicaciones seleccionadas
Recorded Presentations
November 2023
Rusch, D. Evidence-based Practice within the Context of Structural Violence: Advocacy-Centered and Empowerment-Based Clinical Care. In, Child Migration Across the Americas Symposium, Panel 2: Politics of Care. Institute for the Humanities and Latin American and Latino Studies. Watch Here
June 2022
Rusch, D. The Impact of Immigration Policy on Mental Health and How to Intervene. Illinois Mexican and Mexican-American Students Initiative (I-MMAS) Latino/Latina Mental Health Symposium. Watch Here
September 2018
Rusch, D. Detention and Deportation: Addressing the Psychosocial Impact on Migrant Youth and Families. Great Cities Forum. University of Illinois at Chicago. Watch Here
October 2017
Rusch, D. University of Illinois Chicago Provost’s Taskforce on Immigration Issues. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Discussions. Watch Here