USCIS supports citizenship with more than $9 million in grant money

In this first month of the federal fiscal year, we celebrate support for citizenship. Ten partners from The New Americans Campaign (NAC) were among the 40 nonprofit organizations across the country to share in $9.4 million in grants from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), awarded in September 2018. The funding, which runs through 2020, will give each organization $225,000 to support local efforts to help prepare lawful permanent residents (LPRs) to apply for citizenship. Within the Citizenship and Assimilation Grant Program, yet another NAC partner received a grant of $250,000 specifically for refugee and asylee assimilation.

The grant money funds educational programs that increase English language skills, as well as knowledge of U.S. history and civics.

The goal of the funding is to support organizations that provide citizenship instruction and naturalization application assistance to lawful permanent residents. It is also to “promote prospective citizens’ assimilation into American civic life by funding educational programs designed to increase their knowledge of English, U.S. history, and civics.”

The New Americans Campaign congratulates the NAC partners and the other grantees who undertake extensive and important work helping aspiring citizens. This is the tenth year of the Citizenship and Assimilation Grant program which has granted awards totaling $82 million since 2009. USCIS estimates that as many as 200,000 LPRs have been assisted in the naturalization process in 38 states and the District of Columbia.

As a network, our partners and affiliates throughout the country offer many opportunities for people to find help during the naturalization process. We host workshops where volunteers and attorneys assist LPRs in filling out and filing their citizenship application. We staff hotlines in Spanish and Asian languages where interested immigrants can call in with any questions about how to apply and where to access help. The campaign also offers an online platform called Citizenshipworks that coaches applicants on their application.

Bravo to our campaign partners and affiliates who were awarded Citizenship Instruction and Naturalization Application Services grants:

Boat People SOS, Houston, TX

Catholic Charities of Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA

Catholic Charities of Galveston-Houston, Houston, TX

Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Stockton, Stockton, CA

Catholic Migration Services, Brooklyn, NY

Friendly House, Phoenix, AZ

Hispanic Unity of Florida, Hollywood, FL

International Rescue Committee, Los Angeles, CA

International Rescue Committee, Phoenix, AZ

Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition, Boston, MA

And congratulations to the Chaldean Community Foundation of Sterling Heights, MI for receiving a Refugee and Asylee Assimilation Program grant.