The Hope Border Institute (HOPE) is a left-of-center immigration advocacy group based in El Paso, Texas, that opposes the detention of illegal immigrants and immigration policies it considers to be “restrictionist.” ¹ HOPE’s leadership team, as of 2025, has close ties to the Catholic Church. ²

The organization has been a vocal critic of the second Trump administration’s immigration and policies and operates both in the United States and Mexico. ³

Between 2018 and 2023, the group received financial support from the Schwab Charitable Fund, Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund, Network For Good, Tides Foundation, Save The Children Federation, Paso Del Norte Community Foundation, Fwdus Education Fund, El Paso Community Foundation, Faith In Public Life and Faith In Action Network. ⁴

Founding and History

Dylan Corbett, a veteran international and human development worker with prior roles in the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, established the Hope Border Institute (HOPE) in 2015. ⁵ He created the organization following Pope Francis’s call for increased support for migrants in South and North America. ⁶

HOPE has criticized President Donald Trump’s immigration policy, such as the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), or “Remain in Mexico” program, implemented in 2019, which required asylum seekers to wait in Mexico during US proceedings. The group denounced the Remain in Mexico program for harming those HOPE considered to be asylum seekers. ³

In 2017, HOPE, alongside Borderland Immigration Council, published the report Discretion to Deny: Family Separation, Prolonged Detention, and Deterrence of Asylum Seekers at the Hands of Immigration Authorities along the U.S.-Mexico Border, criticizing the Trump administration’s policy of separating families of undocumented migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. ⁷

HOPE, in partnership with the Diocese of El Paso, organized the “Do Not be Afraid” march and vigil in March 2024 to protect what the nonprofit considered to be the rights of those aspiring to seek asylum in the United States. ⁸

Prior to the 2024 presidential elections, HOPE hosted the “Elections and Migration: Challenges, Opportunities, and Hopes” seminar at the University of Texas at El Paso on October 17, 2024, promoting left-of-center views on undocumented migrants and illegal immigration. ⁹

After Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential elections, HOPE joined 192 other left-of-center immigration advocacy groups to send a letter to then-President Joe Biden and then-Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, requesting that they close illegal migrant detention facilities, stop expanding deportations of illegal immigrants, and release detained migrants ahead of the Trump administration’s takeover. ¹⁰

Activities

In addition to research and policy advocacy, and capacity building for activists, as of 2025 HOPE had engaged in two major initiatives: the Root Causes Initiative program and the Border Refugee Assistance Fund. ^{11 12}

Root Causes Initiative

HOPE’s Root Causes Initiative, founded in 2020, sought to identify what the group considered to be the root causes of migrant outflows from their countries of origin. ¹¹

As part of the initiative, the group, in co-operation with 315 religious and civic organizations, identified gang violence, famine, and alleged exploitative labor practices as causes for said migrant outflows. ¹¹

The group then recommended more aid through USAID to help domestic initiatives in the countries of origin rather than increasing border security at the border as a solution for the illegal immigration crisis. ¹¹

Border Refugee Assistance Fund

Established in partnership with the Diocese of El Paso, the Border Refugee Assistance Fund, as of 2020, financed the provision of food, shelter, medical care, and legal assistance to migrants facing restrictive U.S. immigration policies, such as Title 42, through religious-affiliated groups. ¹²

Leadership

Dylan Corbett is HOPE’s founding executive director and held the position as of 2025. Corbett has had prior experience in the international and human development sector, having worked for the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, and the Vatican’s Migrants and Refugees Section in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean as a coordinator. ¹³

Corbett previously worked with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in justice and peace development. ¹³

Alex R. Almanzan, a public advocate with over a decade of experience as an attorney, chaired the nonprofit’s board as of 2025. Almanzan, a Stanford University and St. Mary’s School of Law graduate, previously served as a law clerk to U.S. District Judge David Briones. ²

Other board members as of 2025 included vice chair Nicholas D. Natividad an Associate Professor at New Mexico State University studying civil and human rights. ²

The leadership team as of 2025 also maintained strong ties to the Catholic Church. Arturo J. Banuelas, a Catholic priest, serves as Chair Emeritus and was instrumental in founding the group. Banuelas holds a doctorate in theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome and has been a prominent advocate for illegal immigrant initiatives. ²

Additional board members, as of 2025, Anthony C. Celino, the Auxiliary Bishop of El Paso, and Kenneth Ferrone, executive director of Catholic Charities of Southern New Mexico. ²

Funding

In fiscal year 2023, the nonprofit reported total revenue of $401,982, a decrease from $436,560 in 20221. Much of this revenue ($400,493) came from contributions and grants, with a small amount ($1,489) from other revenue sources. The group, as of 2023, received no program service revenue or investment income. ¹⁴

HOPE’s total expenses in 2023 were $495,698, with the majority ($375,661) going to program services. These program services included aid to asylum seekers ($156,852), including shelter and healthcare assistance. The organization, as of 2023, also spent $52,396 on development training to faith and community leaders. ¹⁴

Personnel costs made up a sizable portion of expenses, with $222,118 spent on salaries and wages, plus $66,732 for employee benefits and payroll taxes. ¹⁴

Total assets decreased from $917,827 to $824,667 during 2023, while liabilities increased slightly from $2,681 to $3,2371. Net assets fell from $915,146 to $821,430, as of 2023. ¹⁴

Between 2018 and 2023, the group received financial support from the Schwab Charitable Fund, Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund, Network For Good, Tides Foundation, Save The Children Federation, Paso Del Norte Community Foundation, Fwd.US Education Fund, El Paso Community Foundation, Faith In Public Life, and Faith In Action Network. ⁴

1. Hope Border Institute. “Our Mission.” Accessed February 24, 2025. https://www.hopeborder.org/our-mission.
2. Hope Border Institute. “Our Board of Directors.” Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.hopeborder.org/our-board-of-directors.
3. Hope Border Institute. “Faith Leaders Denounce ‘Remain in Mexico’ Policy.” Archived October 23, 2019. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://web.archive.org/web/20191023085854/https://www.hopeborder.org/ff-remain-in-mexico.
4. Nonprofit Explorer: Search Results for ’47-2575199.'” ProPublica. Accessed February 14, 2025. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/full_text_search?sort=best&form%5B%5D=IRS990ScheduleI&q=47-2575199&submit=Apply
5. Hope Border Institute. “Our Team.” Accessed February 20, 2025. https://www.hopeborder.org/our-team.
6. John Gehring, “The Church Walks the Walk on Immigration,” National Catholic Reporter, February 15, 2017, https://www.ncronline.org/blogs/ncr-today/church-walks-walk-immigration.
7. Hope Border Institute. Discretion to Deny. Archived September 13, 2024. Accessed February 20, 2025. https://web.archive.org/web/20240913042759/https://www.hopeborder.org/discretion-to-deny-1.
8. Tony Gutierrez, “Hope Border Institute and Diocese of El Paso Lead ‘Do Not Be Afraid’ March,” KVIA ABC-7, March 21, 2024, https://kvia.com/news/border/2024/03/21/hope-border-institute-and-diocese-of-el-paso-lead-do-not-be-afraid-march/.
9. Cordero, Ximena. “Hope Border Institute’s Election and Migration Event Illuminates Deadly Immigration Policies and Community Resistance.” The Prospector, October 28, 2024. https://www.theprospectordaily.com/2024/10/28/elections-migration-hope-border-institue-utep-chicano-studies-harris-trump-biden/.
10. Detention Watch Network. “193 Organizations Urge Biden Administration to Take Decisive Action to Protect Detainee Rights.” Detention Watch Network, 2024. Accessed February 21, 2025. https://www.detentionwatchnetwork.org/pressroom/releases/2024/193-organizations-urge-biden-administration-take-decisive-action-protect.
11. Hope Border Institute. Root Causes Framework. Accessed December 10, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201210162716/https://www.hopeborder.org/root-causes-framework.
12. Hope Border Institute. “Border Refugee Assistance Fund.” Accessed October 26, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201026065133/https://www.hopeborder.org/braf
13. Dylan Corbett, “LinkedIn Profile,” LinkedIn, accessed December 6, 2023, https://www.linkedin.com/in/dylan-corbett-895532b9/; Hope Border Institute, “Our Team,” Hope Border Institute, accessed February 17, 2025, https://www.hopeborder.org/our-team.
14. Hope Border Institute, “Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax, Form 990,” (El Paso, TX: Internal Revenue Service, 2023).