Dr. Cecilia Ayón’s research focuses on how immigration policies and sociopolitical climates shape the health, well-being, and family processes of Latinx immigrant communities. As a community-engaged researcher, Dr. Ayón specializes in studying hard-to-reach populations, particularly Latinx immigrant children and families. Drawing from her lived experience as the daughter of Mexican immigrants and her training as a social work practitioner, Dr. Ayón brings a deeply informed and community-centered perspective to social policy research.

Dr. Ayón is widely recognized for her contribution to these communities from her research, including a book she co-authored titled “Family Legal Vulnerability” that captures the experiences of Latinx students and how their education and social mobility are shaped by their own immigration status and their families’ undocumented immigration status. Her recent publication, “Families getting separated feels bad: Latinx children’s perceptions of the immigration climate and socialization process”, also examines how children in California perceive and navigate the immigration policy climate by focusing on their emotional responses and the immigration socialization process.

Her research has most recently earned her the Social Policy Researcher Award (SSWR) by the Society for Social Work and Research, speaking to her contributions toward understanding how public policy improves the daily lives of immigrant families and informs more equitable and inclusive social support systems.