Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | November 17, 2025 | Worcester Business Journal 11 issues," said Pelletier. In June 2024, Ascentria had to close its Springfield immigration office aer losing a grant through the state aimed at supporting Afghan immigrants. In December, the organization had to lay off an attorney and a paralegal aer Ascentria was not awarded a renewal of its human trafficking grant. at same month, Ascentria had to close its low bono program due to lack of funding. Earlier this year, the organization tem- porarily lost its largest funding source, as a $1-million contract to support unac- companied children, managed through Acacia Center for Justice, was cancelled by the federal government. e contract has since been restored, but the waters are far from clear. Luckily, Ascentria has foundational funders whose donations have helped keep the organization's immigration legal services afloat. "[ey] have helped us keep the lights on and allowed us to continue serving our clients," said Pelletier. Ascentria has turned to other organi- zations for collaboration and resources as the entire region and state have felt the tangible strains of increased demand for services. e nonprofit has teamed up with Boston-based organizations, including Massachusetts Immigrant & Refu- gee Advocacy Coalition, the Political Asylum / Immigration Representation Project, and the Habeas Project of Massachusetts, to provide representation for clients and host free informational clinics. CWJC works closely with Worcester organizations to provide services, such as emergency food assistance, and Chuk- wurah said more attorneys are reaching out to each other to stay up to date on policy changes throughout the nation. "What gives me hope is seeing all of the organizations come together to support each other," said Pelletier. Still, she worries about her staff and the stress they go through representing their clients. She worries about grant renewals and continued human rights violations. "I worry about people that just want to be safe and contribute to their soci- ety," she said. The Future of Rent Collection & Escrow Management ZRent and ZEscrow from Cornerstone Bank. Fast | Efficient | Convenient | Cost-Effective Scan QR code to connect with us. Member FDIC | Member DIF 774-745-8698 cornerstonebank.com area of increase," she said. In detention proceedings, VanScoyoc and her team are working to represent a myriad of client needs, from seeking bond, to challenging the legality of their detentions, to those applying for asylum due to persecution in their home countries. Central Massachusetts is seeing an in- flux in need for representation for those seeking temporary protected status, said Chukwurah. TPS is a designation afforded to countries allowing their nationals to stay in the U.S. temporarily because a safe return is not deemed possible by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. is year, the Trump Administration terminated a number of TPS designa- tions, including those for Venezuela, Af- ghanistan, and Haiti, leaving thousands vulnerable to removal proceedings. Others, who had previously had their removal proceedings terminated because they received TPS status, are now seeing their cases reopened, said Chukwurah. "Now people are trying to get screen- ings to see if they qualify for any other form of legal status, like asylum," said Pelletier. e Trump Administration has been making changes to immigration policies, such as TPS designations, on a weekly basis, said VanScoyoc. "ere are changes happening every week to immigration law and policy," she said. "In the time that I've been prac- ticing immigration law, which is since 2008, I have not seen a time of such rapid change before." For example, on Oct. 30, the Trump Administration said it would cap refugee admissions to the states at 7,500 in fiscal year 2026, primarily saving spaces for white South Africans, representing a 94% cut from the Biden Administration, according to NPR. On Sept. 19, the Trump Administra- tion announced employers would have to fork over a $100,000 fee for new H-1B visa petitions, up from about $7,000. In July, new fees were implemented for a number of immigration-related form submissions and applications, running up to $550. "It's like every Friday, we're just waiting for whatever shoe to drop," said Chukwurah. "I'm seeing more immigra- tion attorney burnout, especially those that do removal." Collaborating in crisis In an effort to meet the growing demand for services, CWJC is add- ing a new immigration attorney, and Ascentria is hiring a new paralegal and support staff. Simply hiring more help isn't as easy as it may seem. Funding is a constant, lingering concern that was an issue be- fore Trump became president again. Funding for CWJC has remained fairly stable over the past year, said Jonathan Mannina, executive director of Community Legal Aid, of which CWJC is an affiliate. Still, about 15% of Community Legal Aid's funding comes from federal sourc- es and are at great risk, Mannina said. e funding situation for Ascentria has been more volatile. "Right now, we are limited in the type of cases that we can accept representa- tion of due to federal funding restric- tions, and due to our own capacity W Mass. ICE detainees The daily population at Plymouth County Correctional Facility, the Massachusetts facility holding the preponderance of the state's ICE detainees, has risen nearly 400% since September 2023. Average daily population on the last reported Date day of the month Jan. 2023 92 Feb. 2023 90 March 2023 90 April 2023 89 May 2023 90 June 2023 90 July 2023 91 Aug. 2023 91 Sept. 2023 91 Oct. 2023 143 Nov. 2023 173 Dec. 2023 172 Jan. 2024 170 Feb. 2024 172 March 2024 177 April 2024 185 May 2024 190 Average daily population on the last reported Date day of the month June 2024 201 July 2024 212 Aug. 2024 230 Sept. 2024 235 Oct. 2024 343 Nov. 2024 354 Dec. 2024 363 Jan. 2025 374 Feb. 2025 390 March 2025 411 April 2025 420 May 2025 429 June 2025 434 July 2025 440 Aug. 2025 445 Sept. 2025 449 Lilian Chukwurah has witnessed first-hand the growing number of people targeted by ICE: "Now, it's legal to target them just based on how they look and how they speak." PHOTO | EDD COTE Source: TRAC (Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse) Reports

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