Switchboard Blog
Switchboard’s blog posts offer a wide range of insights on the newcomer experience, including practical tips for navigating the resettlement process, resource lists tailored to community needs, case studies about relevant programs, engaging stories of successful integration, and more.
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Challenging Community Conversations: Three Tips to Build Understanding and Support
Across the resettlement network, staff and partners are noticing an uptick in community questions about newcomers. Many people want clarity about who is arriving and how local services support them. These questions usually stem from uncertainty or limited information. When people have few opportunities to interact with newcomers or understand how resettlement works, conversations can…
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The American Rescue Plan, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, provides the largest Child Tax Credit ever. As of July 15, 2021, most families with children are automatically receiving monthly payments of $250 or $300 per child without having to take any action. However, some ORR-eligible populations may be missing out. Below is information about…
- The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) in HHS’ Administration for Children and Families (ACF)
Photo credit: A. Oberstadt/IRC Update (10/4/21): In response to the rapid evacuation and resettlement of Afghans, per the Afghanistan Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2022, and effective as of September 30, 2021, Congress has authorized the following: Citizens or nationals of Afghanistan paroled into the U.S. between July 31, 2021 through September 30, 2022 are eligible for…
- Switchboard
Many refugee service providers are asking how to best support clients from Afghanistan during this time of crisis. Below are a few tips that may be helpful to program staff and leaders as they seek to care for clients and staff affected by the situation in Afghanistan. Sharing Information Compassionately The current situation in Afghanistan…
- Switchboard
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, youth and young adult vaccination rates remain below what is needed to keep our communities safest. Encouraging young adults to get the vaccine and encouraging parents to get it for their eligible children have both become major priorities. Below are tips and resources from the National Resource Center…
- NRC-RIM
Refugee service providers play a critical role in COVID-19 response, supporting refugee and immigrant communities so that they can get accurate, accessible information from trusted sources. To help with that effort, Switchboard is excited to feature blogs from our colleagues at the National Resource Center for Refugees, Immigrants, and Migrants (NRC-RIM). Each blog post will…
- NRC-RIM
With the economic and health crises that came with COVID-19, many service providers were forced to shift priorities with clients. This was the case at Jewish Family Service of Seattle (JFS) of Seattle, where we quickly pivoted to services more focused on emergency needs. To ensure we did not lose sight of our long-term integration…
- Paige Vogel