Voices of Our Community
As we look toward the future of the Center for Immigration Policy & Research (CIPR), we’re proud to share the testimonies of those who have shaped, supported, and been impacted by our work. These reflections—from faculty, student, and community partners—highlight the depth and reach of our mission.
Each quote below tells part of the story of CIPR: a place where research meets community, where learning fuels justice, and where policy is shaped by lived experience.
We are grateful to everyone who took the time to share a piece of their journey with us. Whether it’s a snapshot from their time at CIPR, a project they helped bring to life, or a reflection on the work still ahead—these stories help us show the real impact of our work and inspire support for the road ahead.
Faculty
Dr. Bryan Rojas-Araúz
“CIPR to me means being witnessed and welcomed as an immigrant person. It is a space that reminds both scholars and community members that we are not alone in our fight and that no matter the rhetoric or xenophobia expressed there are people who will continue to fight for and side by side immigrant communities here in Colorado and in the United States. “
Dr. Carlos Jimenez and Dr. Lina Reznicek Parrado
"We share various projects which combine critical community-engaged learning and oral narrative collections to highlight the contributions and voice of Spanish-speaking communities in Colorado. In that mission, CIPR has been instrumental not only in supporting our student collaborators financially, but also in representing an outlet for us to disseminate our work, meet new allies and connect meaningfully with community partners. It has also allowed us to strengthen connections between our two departments Media Film and Journalism & Spanish Language, Literary and Cultural Studies. We have benefitted immensely from CIPR’s intentional efforts to bring scholars, students, faculty and community leaders together to further and critically inform the complex issues that surround immigration locally and globally. As interdisciplinary collaborators, CIPR represents our collective academic home.”
Dr. Maria Vukovich
“Collaboration with CIPR has been invaluable as the Co-director of the International Disaster Psychology Program and Director of Interdisciplinary Global Mental Health Innovation at University of Denver. CIPR's leadership, staff, and students are incredibly dedicated, knowledgeable, and engaged with local immigrant-led organizations and movements. Partnership with CIPR has helped tremendously with advocating for policies that bolster immigrant rights and access to services within the University and across the Denver Metro.”
Community Scholars
César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández
"Professionally, I’m far removed from DU’s campus, but I have found CIPR to be an intellectual home where migration scholars from multiple disciplines are encouraged to engage in rigorous research and policy analysis. In its short life, CIPR has become a hub of academic inquiry into migration across Colorado and a model for regional collaborations."
Cyril Bennouna
“CIPR has been my academic home away from home for several years now, and I cherish the community and support it has offered me. As a Community Scholar Affiliate, I have worked with CIPR in a variety of capacities. Over the course of one year, as a Brown University Research Mobility Fellow housed at CIPR, I worked with Co-Director Rebecca Galemba and her qualitative methods class on a formative evaluation of one of Denver's foremost immigrant-serving organizations. We published our evaluation report last year and presented it during an event with Mayor Mike Johnston. Over the past year at CIPR, I have also published a variety of articles for scientific journals and the media, including in the Journal of Refugee Studies, the Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, the Journal of Participatory Research Methods, and Think Global Health.”
Students/Alumns
Annie Zean Dunbar
“As a scholar who focuses on forced migration and displacement, the Center's creation was exciting and an important addition to the DU community while I was a graduate student. In 2023, I had the great honor of receiving funding through the Summer Student Research Grant. This grant supported my dissertation research on the lives and experiences of Black newcomer direct service providers. The critical qualitative study offers insights into how providers with lived experience of migration navigate racialization, professionalization, and community. Since graduating in 2024, I am currently a Clinical Assistant Professor in Social Work at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. At UCCS I support the training and education of future social work professionals in the state of Colorado.”
Jacob Levy
“Funding from CIPR empowered me to complete an internship with the Jewish Family Services Yana Vishnitsky Refugee Resettlement Program. Through this experience I gained case management skills and a deeper understanding for the reality of refugee resettlement work that has deepened my academic interests and supported my career goals.”
Sam Colvett
“I was a student at Korbel when CIPR first launched. Throughout my undergraduate and graduate experience, I worked with Professor Galemba as a Research Assistant, and I was involved in the logistics of the inaugural symposium in 2022. I remember listening to the experts on the panel discussions that we hosted during the symposium and feeling inspired to be surrounded by such committed academics, legal practitioners, and activists. When I think of CIPR, I think of a center that is focused on community engagement. Through CIPR, I became involved in a qualitative research project in collaboration with El Centro Humanitario after the arrival of their new executive director in 2022. I was also involved in an interdisciplinary research project focusing on the linkages between climate change and migration in Guatemala. Applying the research methodologies that I was learning helped me ground my studies and gain practical experience that helped me land my first job with the UN Refugee Agency, where I continued to work with refugees and immigrants throughout the Americas.”
Victoria Arias
“Being a CIPR Student Grant recipient allowed me to continue to pursue my internship with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where I conducted research and translated critical healthcare documents into Spanish for immigrant communities. As a daughter of immigrants, this work felt deeply personal. CIPR’s support made this opportunity possible by allowing me to uplift voices like those in my own family. This experience strengthened my commitment to accessible healthcare and immigration advocacy and I’m incredibly grateful to be part of a community that believes in that mission.”
Bianca García
“CIPR plays an invaluable role at the University of Denver in bringing together communities focused on advancing scholarship and engagement initiatives focused on (im)migration. As a former DU student, CIPR helped feed my passion for immigration rights through my involvement with el Centro de los trabajadores and contribution to the DU Colectivo research digest during my master’s program. I dove into the intersections between worker and immigration rights while being able to serve my local community. Through the digest and with the aid of my classmates, we were able to share our experiences and the teachings of El Centro’s members with a greater audience. After graduating in 2022, I assumed the role of CIPR’s Administrator and CourtWatch Research Assistant. From organizing community events on DU’s campus to the weekly visits to the downtown immigration courts, I was able to continue learning from campus and community partners and witness what legal and administrative challenges immigrants and asylum seekers were facing. CIPR empowered me as a student to pursue these opportunities as a student, alumna, and employee. It has shaped who I am on a personal and professional level. CIPR’s role as an academic and community hub for (im)migration must continue for years to come.”
Rebecca David-Hensley
“As a recipient of a CIPR Summer Research Grant, I was able to complete the research portion of my dissertation which involved community organizers working on immigration concerns in the state of Texas. The grant funded portions of my travel from Colorado to Texas to interview study participants in person and engage with them in their local organizing contexts, providing clearer observations and insights into their work. I completed my PhD through the University of Denver / Iliff School of Theology Joint Doctoral Program in the Study of Religion in December 2024, with deep appreciation to CIPR for supporting my work at the critical intersections of religion, race, and immigration.”
Sarala Pradhan
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to reflect on my engagement with the Center for Immigration Policy and Research (CIPR), which has been instrumental in shaping my work, both as a social worker and now as a project coordinator for the SUCCESS project, focused on the intersection of climate change and migration. Through CIPR, I was fortunate to be involved in two research grants: 1. From Clients to Partners: How Can IRC Denver Better Meet the Needs of Refugees and Asylum-Seekers with Multiply-Marginalized Identities? In this project, I served as a research assistant evaluating IRC Denver’s services for asylum seekers. I contributed to developing the research methodology and conducted interviews with both service recipients and providers. Despite the project being canceled due to logistical, staffing, and partnership challenges, it provided me with meaningful insight into program evaluation and deepened my understanding of systemic barriers facing asylum-seeking populations. 2. How Does the Criminalization of Immigrants Impact Immigrant Livelihoods in Colorado and the U.S.? This research stemmed from my direct work with the Direct Action Team, addressing wage theft among immigrant workers and other research interests. Although this project was paused due to health emergencies and only the initial stages were completed, it laid the groundwork for further academic exploration in my graduate coursework and continues to influence my current policy work. While neither project reached full completion, both were foundational to my professional growth. They helped prepare me for my role as a social worker in Arapahoe County—one of Colorado’s most diverse communities—where I worked closely with immigrant families navigating compounding challenges related to legal status, poverty, and parenting under pressure. Moreover, the resources and community connections I gained through CIPR were invaluable. I was able to share relevant materials and strategies with my colleagues, many of whom are still using these tools to support immigrant families through increasingly difficult times marked by anti-immigrant sentiment and harsh federal policies. Now, in my role with the SUCCESS project, these experiences continue to inform my research, community, and policy engagement practices as we explore how migration and climate displacement intersect.”
Yara Balouk
“In my work this summer, I found a thread in all souls I encountered. They have a why. So I share this call to action for those who walk the path of an immigrant: Remember your why. And remember that others have one too. It does not need to make sense. It is sacred as it is. Be you. And allow others to do the same. Be authentic and let others be authentic. There is space for everyone.”
Community Partners
Andrea Loyola (Casa de Paz)
“We are so grateful for the partnership with the Center for Immigration Policy and Research (CIPR). CIPR has always gracefully highlighted the importance of our work and mission. They promote our work to their students and have committed themselves to be allies of this important work. They have been proud sponsors of our 2024 Annual Event and partner with us throughout the year."
Greg Mortimer (Colorado Immigrant Justice Fund)
“I help to run the Colorado Immigrant Justice Fund - a legal defense fund for detained asylum seekers. I also help to coordinate the letter-writing and visitation programs for Casa de Paz. CIPR has funded the internships for several DU students who helped with all of those efforts, including the creation of promotional videos, assistance with our newsletters, leading detention center visits, and recruiting others to the work, which has been a significant boost to our efforts. The students would not have been able to do this work without CIPR's funding, so I am deeply grateful to both the students and CIPR for their partnership!”