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CMS Partners with Queens Congregation United for Action on Deferred Action

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Catholic Migration Services partnered with Queens Congregation United for Action (QCUA) for an informational session about Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals at St. Teresa’s Parish in Woodside.

Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, is a limited form of relief that provides protection from deportation and offers legal authorization to work for DREAM Act-eligible youth for a renewable period of two years.

QCUA volunteers, many of whom are DREAM Act-eligible youth themselves, presented DACA requirements to approximately twenty parents and their children. CMS immigration counselor and outreach specialist Megan Helbling then addressed participant questions and concerns.  At the end of the session, QCUA and CMS staff helped potential applicants to fill out basic forms to screen for DACA eligibility. Eligible applicants were then scheduled for appointments to process their applications through CMS.

Since President Obama announced Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals in June, Catholic Migration Services has worked tirelessly to spread awareness about the policy to DREAM Act-eligible youth in Queens and Brooklyn. In September, CMS held a DACA outreach event at St. Joan of Arc Parish in Jackson Heights, Queens, where we screened potential applicants for eligibility and scheduled follow-up appointments to process applications. In October, we organized a second DACA outreach event at St. Michael’s Parish in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. So far, we have processed nearly 200 applications!

For more information, or if you believe you are eligible for DACA, please contact our Queens office (347-472-3500) or our Brooklyn office (718-236-3000).

Article by Megan Helbling, Immigration Counselor/Outreach Specialist