USCIS Announces Fiscal Year 2014 Grant Recipients Local agency gets $250,000 to help immigrants prepare for citizenship Portland, Ore. – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) awarded nearly $10 million in grants last week to 40 organizations that will help permanent residents prepare and apply for U.S. citizenship. Ecumenical Industries of Oregon is among the organizations that will receive federal funding to support citizenship preparation services for permanent residents through September 2016. The amount of the grant is $250,000. Since it began in 2009, the USCIS Citizenship and Integration Grant Program has awarded a total of $43 million through 222 competitive grants to public or private non-profit organizations in 35 states and the District of Columbia. Now in its sixth year, the program has helped more than 93,000 permanent residents prepare for citizenship. USCIS anticipates that an additional 32,000 permanent residents will receive citizenship preparation services by Sept. 30, 2016, as a result of the grant program. “Our Citizenship and Integration Grant Program is an integral part of our agency’s mission of supporting immigrant integration and participation in American civic culture,” said USCIS Director León Rodríguez. “Grant recipient organizations, located throughout the country, are a crucial network of supporters that help tens of thousands of permanent residents access high-quality services and gain access to valuable citizenship information.” The grant will benefit Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon’s program Sponsors Organized to Assist Refugees (SOAR) Legal Services. SOAR Legal Services provides culturally competent, immigration-related legal representation and education for refugees and low-income immigrants in and around the Portland metro area. Recognized by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) as an authorized provider of immigration legal services, SOAR Legal’s attorney-driven legal program has a staff of two attorneys, two BIA-accredited representatives and one legal assistant. This year’s announcement, done Sept 18, was part of USCIS’ celebration of Constitution Week, commemorated every Sept. 17-23 in honor of the signing of the U.S. Constitution in 1787. During this week, we celebrate our history and reflect on what it means to be a U.S. citizen. For additional information on the Citizenship and Integration Grant Program, please visit uscis.gov/grants. News points of contact are Sharon Rummery, (415)248-8873 for USCIS, and Carla Starrett-Bigg (503) 221-1054 for Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon.
Posted on: Mon, 29 Sep 2014 21:42:33 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015