Aimee Hilado_high res Photo

Aimee Hilado

Aimee Hilado, Ph.D., LCSW is an Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice where her work focuses on migration trauma and its impact on refugee and immigrant families with very young children. She is a Board Member of ZERO TO THREE, a former ZERO TO THREE Fellow and Co-Chair of the Academy of Fellows.

Contributions to the Field

Aimee Hilado, Ph.D., LCSW is a licensed clinical social worker and community-based intervention researcher specializing in immigration trauma and refugee/immigrant mental health. Dr. Hilado is an Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice where she teaches and conducts research on understudied pathways to promoting mental wellness and adjustment for newcomers. Her research lab – The Refugee Wellness Laboratory – studies diverse communities across different immigration statuses (refugees, asylum-seekers, migrants, unaccompanied children) and across the lifespan from early childhood to older adults. Several initiatives in Dr. Hilado’s Lab center on the importance of supporting infant early childhood mental health (IECMH) as a foundation for life-long development, learning, and health outcomes while focusing on mental health outcomes in the context of the organizations and health systems refugee and immigrant families interface.

On the Board, Dr. Hilado contributes to initiatives that focus on immigration policy and workforce development efforts specific to dual-language newcomer families with very young children in addition to other committee assignments.

Aimee is a passionate teacher, researcher, and advocate for equitable resources and mental healthcare access to newcomer refugee and immigrant communities. She lives and works in Chicago with her family.

Affiliations

  • Assistant Professor, University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice
  • Faculty Affiliate, University of Chicago Center for Race, Politics, and Culture
  • Fellow, University of Chicago Center for Health Administration Studies
  • Co-Chair, ZERO TO THREE Academy of Fellows
  • Chair, Coalition for Immigrant Mental Health

Recent Honors/Awards/Recognition/Books Published

  • ZERO TO THREE Fellow, 2018-2020
  • ZERO TO THREE Academy Council Co-Chair, 2023-present
  • Hilado, A., & Lundy, M. (Eds.) (2017). Models for Practice with Immigrants and Refugees: Collaboration, Cultural Awareness and Integrative Theory. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.