The Coalition for Immigrant Mental Health Annual Convening
This year’s annual convening marks the Coalition’s 10th anniversary and serves as a space for celebration, learning, and connection.
(español abajo)
Nurturing the Roots of Wellness Through Connection, Culture, and Imagination
Time: November 13th, 2026, from 8:15am to 6pm (approx)
Location: Chicago Teachers Union
This year’s annual convening marks the Coalition’s 10th anniversary and serves as a space for celebration, learning, reflection, and connection. CIMH has creatively rooted its efforts in promoting wellness and the humane treatment of immigrants by building and bridging alliances with community organizations, advocating for culturally respectful local and state-level responses, as well as implementing and creating culturally responsive trauma-informed trainings.
Reflecting the Coalition’s efforts in the past ten years, this convening will center community-rooted, trauma-informed, and practice-based approaches to wellness and healing through culture, imagination, solidarity, and collective care. We aim to create a gathering that is practical, accessible, inclusive, and grounded in the wisdom and leadership of immigrant and refugee communities.
The goals of this convening are to:
- Celebrate and acknowledge the Coalition’s 10th anniversary and collective accomplishments
- Highlight and uplift the work of community organizations and directly impacted leaders
- Foster opportunities for learning, reflection, networking, and collaboration
- Share concrete and practical skills, tools, and strategies communities can use immediately
- Strengthen collective capacity and mutual support systems
- Build connections across sectors, roles, and communities
- Provide spaces for visioning a future of well-being
- Create accessible and welcoming spaces for directly impacted community members
Continuing Education Units (CEs) for social workers, counselors, therapists, psychologists, and related professionals will be included with your ticket.
For questions related to the convening, please contact Cindy Eigler at cindy@ourcimh.org
Cultivando las Raíces del Bienestar a Través de la Conexión, la Cultura y la Imaginación
Fecha: 13 de noviembre de 2026, de 8:15am a 6:00pm (aprox.)
Lugar: Sindicato de Maestros de Chicago
El encuentro anual de este año conmemora el décimo aniversario de la Coalición y ofrece un espacio para la celebración, el aprendizaje, la reflexión y la conexión. CIMH ha basado sus esfuerzos de manera creativa en la promoción del bienestar y el trato humano a los inmigrantes mediante la creación y el fortalecimiento de alianzas con organizaciones comunitarias, la defensa de respuestas locales y estatales culturalmente respetuosas, así como la implementación y creación de capacitaciones con enfoque en el trauma y adaptadas a la cultura.
Como reflejo de los esfuerzos de la Coalición durante los últimos diez años, este encuentro se centrará en enfoques comunitarios, con enfoque en el trauma y basados en la práctica para el bienestar y la sanación a través de la cultura, la imaginación, la solidaridad y el cuidado colectivo. Nuestro objetivo es crear un encuentro práctico, accesible, inclusivo y basado en la sabiduría y el liderazgo de las comunidades inmigrantes y refugiadas.
Los objetivos de esta reunión son:
- Celebrar y reconocer el décimo aniversario de la Coalición y sus logros colectivos.
- Destacar y promover el trabajo de las organizaciones comunitarias y los líderes directamente afectados.
- Fomentar oportunidades de aprendizaje, reflexión, creación de redes y colaboración.
- Compartir habilidades, herramientas y estrategias concretas y prácticas que las comunidades puedan utilizar de inmediato.
- Fortalecer la capacidad colectiva y los sistemas de apoyo mutuo.
- Crear conexiones entre sectores, roles y comunidades.
- Proporcionar espacios para imaginar un futuro de bienestar.
- Crear espacios accesibles y acogedores para los miembros de la comunidad directamente afectados.
Créditos de formación continua (CE) a trabajadores sociales, consejeros, terapeutas, psicólogos y profesionales afines van a ser ofrecidos con tu ticket.
Preguntas
Para preguntas relacionadas con el encuentro, comuníquese con Cindy Eigler a cindy@ourcimh.org
Artists
Mayda Del Valle
Calpulli Huehuecoyotl
Good to know
Highlights
- 10 hours
- In person
Refund Policy
Location
Chicago Teachers Union
1901 West Carroll Avenue
Chicago, IL 60612
How do you want to get there?
Agenda
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Crossings: Storytelling and Healing Through Documentary Film
This session explores documentary film as a vehicle for digital storytelling about migration, safety, and belonging in the United States through the Crossings film project. Featuring the stories of Samira, Johannes, and members of Los Caribeños, presenters will examine the lived experiences of refugees and immigrants seeking asylum, including the emotional impact of migration, family separation, immigration detention, resilience, and community belonging. Presenters will introduce the Crossings educational website, which includes documentary films and expert interviews designed to support practitioners and educators in understanding asylum, migration, and the role of storytelling in healing and advocacy. Participants will identify ways to deepen understanding of the lived experiences of refugees and immigrants, describe the role of storytelling and documentary film in promoting empathy and mental health awareness, and apply strategies for listening to individuals' stories with presence
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Holding Space, Holding Place: Rooting Future Success in Past Lessons
As managers, we are trained to incorporate self-care, address implicit bias, and examine the impact of whiteness in our work. Yet we are often left with questions about how to hold space for our staff's individual needs while rooting our teams' success in effective collaboration. As leaders, we have come to understand that a one-size-fits-all management approach does not work. In this session, we will share lessons learned and practical tools for effective staff supervision, including consistent scheduling of one-on-one supervision, small and large team check-ins, dedicated time for visioning with direct service staff, self-care practices, and transparent and accountable feedback loops. Participants will leave with practical strategies to identify approaches to effective staff supervision, describe methods for supporting collaboration and staff well-being, and apply leadership practices that foster safe, supportive, and accountable work environments.
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Arab Americans with Disabilities: Culture, Religion and Identity Shaping a New
Arab Americans are a diverse community with varied migration experiences, religious affiliations, cultural traditions, languages, and socioeconomic backgrounds that contribute to a rich and complex collective identity. This community-centered session explores the intersection of Arab identity, disability, immigration, and culture while distinguishing between Arab identity and Muslim identity. Presenters will examine how immigration experiences, acculturation, cultural identity, and religious connections can influence access to disability services, as well as the impact of ableism, Islamophobia, stigma, and harmful stereotypes on Arab people with disabilities. Participants will strengthen their cultural awareness and intercultural communication skills, identify strategies for building trust with Arab individuals and families, and apply culturally responsive practices that promote accessibility, inclusion, and meaningful community partnerships.