Meredith Lee's blog

Photo: AP/Sayyid Azim, accessed from VPR website

Vermont Public Radio celebrated the hard-won achievements of several Somali Bantu refugees on the January 26 broadcast of Vermont Edition.

The Migration Policy Institute (MPI) is seeking applicants for the 2012 E Pluribus Unum Prizes for exceptional immigrant integration initiatives.  Three awards of $50,000 and one Corporate Leadership Award will be granted to programs that successfully help immigrants become integral members of local communities across the US.  Funding for prizes is provided by the J. M. Kaplan Fund.

 
With the continued shrinking of federal, state and local budgets, effective resource coordination is essential to maintaining quality services for refugees.  A "Best Practice" in this area has emerged from the City of Boise and the Idaho Office for Refugees.
 

 
The FY 2011 Continuing Resolution, as recently passed by the House of Representatives, will cut vital programs that serve vulnerable refugees overseas and in the US.  The Bureau for Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM/Department of State) and the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR/ACF/DHHS) face steep budget cuts or recissions.
 

 
Washington, DC:  February 7, 2011
 
The Bureau for Population, Refugees and Migration (Department of State) and the Office of Refugee Resettlement (Administration for Children and Families, Department of Health and Human Services)hosted the first of what will be quarterly webinars covering refugee placement issues.
 

Photo by Jennifer Ludden/NPR, accessed on Jan 26, 2010 from www.npr.org 
 

New England-based Sudanese rejoiced after voting in Arlington, MA. (Dina Rudick/ Globe Staff) Accessed from boston.com/news on January 11, 2011.
 

Photo credit: Shawn Raecke / Idaho Statesman. Accessed on January 3, 2011 from www.idahostatesman.com.
 
Above: Bhutanese refugee Kumari Luitel was hired as a caregiver for Boise resident Margaret Whitman.

 
The Idaho Office for Refugees and the Idaho Department of Labor co-sponsored an employer summit on refugees in health care on December 2  in Boise.  Boise State Public Radio produced a great segment on the event, highlighting the successful contributions of refugees as health care providers.

For the seventh year in a row, Sioux Falls, South Dakota was ranked No. 1 on Forbes.com list of America's best small cities for business and career opportunities. Bismarck, North Dakota garnered the No. 4 spot, with Fargo ranked at No. 9. 
 
These three cities together served close to 800 refugees and asylees through the Wilson-Fish Alternative Program in fiscal year 2009.