USCIS announces this year’s Citizenship and Integration Grants awards

recipients are small community-based organizations this year

(The following blog post was published today on the USCIS blog, The Beacon.)

Over the last seven years, our Citizenship and Integration Grant Program has helped more than 156,000 lawful permanent residents prepare to apply for citizenship through more than 300 competitive grants to immigrant-serving organizations in 37 states and the District of Columbia. Recently, we welcomed representatives from the 46 community-based organizations funded under the fiscal year 2016 grant program to Washington, D.C., for a two-day orientation session. Among them: 10 organizations (listed below) that were selected to receive funding under a newly created grant opportunity called Citizenship Instruction.

This new opportunity is designed to assist nonprofit groups in establishing citizenship instruction programs or expanding the quality and reach of existing programs. Through this effort, we’re hoping to expand the availability of citizenship classes for permanent residents, particularly classes offered by small, community-based organizations that have not previously received grant funding from USCIS.

Each of the grant recipients has substantial experience providing literacy and English as a second language instruction to adult immigrants. Our goal is to transfer that experience and knowledge into robust and effective citizenship education programs by providing both funding and intensive support and technical assistance. We look forward to collaborating with these organizations as they work to support aspiring citizens in communities across the country.

The new grant recipients represent locations from Vermont to Hawaii, serving a highly diverse pool of individuals. The groups range from public school systems to public libraries, community- and faith-based organizations to traditional adult education and literacy organizations, as well as three mutual assistance associations. They embody the strong community spirit that has supported the integration of generation after generation of immigrants in America.

For more information on our FY 2016 grant recipients, including those funded under this new initiative, please visit the grant program section of the Citizenship Resource Center.

Organization

Location

Award

Catholic Charities Community Services, Archdiocese of New York

New York, NY

$100,000.00

The Chaldean Community Foundation

Sterling Heights, MI

$100,000.00

Chinese Community Center, Inc.

Houston, TX

$100,000.00

Ethiopian Tewahedo Social Services

Columbus, OH

$100,000.00

Irish International Immigrant Center, Inc.

Boston, MA

$100,000.00

Literacy Chicago

Chicago, IL

$96,000.00

Literacy New Jersey, Inc.

Edison, NJ

$100,000.00

Pacific Gateway Center

Honolulu, HI

$97,000.00

U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, Inc.

Colchester, VT

$100,000.00

Vietnamese American Community Center of the East Bay

Oakland, CA

$100,000.00