Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Department

Diversity and Community Studies

Additional Departmental Affiliation

Psychology

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

This project draws on research that I conducted May to August 2019 with a nonprofit organization, La Casita Center, that provides services to the Hispanic immigrant community in Louisville KY. Despite what appears to be a bleak time in our country for immigrants and immigration reform, there is hope found in the organizations that are working to support and fill the gap that the national government has left. I draw on interviews and participant observation research conducted with staff at La Casita Center to

  1. Analyze how La Casita staff decide which resources and projects to implement.

  2. Consider how the current political climate has affected La Casita Center and the resources and projects they choose to implement.

  3. Examine staffs’ perspectives on how receptive the broader Louisville community is to the immigrant community that La Casita Center serves and whether that has changed in recent time.

La Casita Center provides a variety of programs and resources to its clients, including a legal clinic, childcare, summer camps, ESL and Spanish literacy classes, themed workshops, a food pantry, diaper bank and soup kitchen, along with case management and individual advocacy. The constant threat resulting from anti-immigrant policies and rhetoric require that organizations be vigilant in making sure they are implementing useful resources for the immigrant community they serve, and I present an analysis of these services using interview and observation data.

Advisor(s) or Committee Chair

Kate Horigan, Ph.D.

Disciplines

Nonprofit Administration and Management | Other Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration | Social and Behavioral Sciences

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