We are two months into the new administration, and IIB is pivoting to deliver on our mission of making Western New York a better place for, and because of, immigrants and refugees.

I want to offer my heartfelt thanks if you made a cash donation to fill the gap left when the new administration broke its promise and suspended resettlement services for newly arrived refugees through The United States Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP). We had clients arriving in December and January, right up to Inauguration Day, who were promised 90 days of services and case management support by the U.S. government. The new Trump administration cut all future resettlement funding through a stop-work order issued on January 24th. Thankfully, donations from the WNY community gave 731 local refugees the proper integration into the community. 

If you want to help, we can use your financial support if it is in your heart to donate. There is still plenty of work to do at IIB, including helping New Americans find jobs, learn English, navigate our community, get legal help, and many other things. We will continue our educational mission and explain to government, business, and community leaders why immigrants and refugees are good for Buffalo and the rest of the region.

Ironically, March 17th was the 45th anniversary of The Refugee Act of 1980, which created USRAP and formalized our national refugee laws to fulfill the international law treaty that the U.S. ratified after World War II.

USRAP is the program responsible for adjudicating refugee claims. That includes the completion of extensive screening mechanisms such as background checks, medical exams, and the other things necessary to ensure it is safe to resettle them in our country while at the same time addressing the worldwide humanitarian need and continuing America's history of welcoming foreign-born people. USRAP has been a successfully functioning federal program for decades, ensuring the safety of Americans while contributing to our nation's growing economy at the same time.

Unfortunately, on February 26th, President Trump and the U.S. Department of State canceled all opened USRAP resettlement contracts with national partners that work with IIB to resettle refugees. The result is that there is no foreseeable future for overseas refugee processing and no pipeline to bring new arrivals to Buffalo. With what is going on in Washington as a backdrop, you should know that eight people lost their positions as part of the IIB workforce reductions, and two additional people resigned.

If you understand why USRAP is essential and want to help IIB, find your representatives in Congress and let them know how you feel. The quickest way to do that is to call them.

Jennifer Rizzo-Choi, 
Executive Director

If you love trivia nights and having fun, it is time for Community World Trivia! Gather a few friends or coworkers and make up a team to vie for the honor of being Buffalo's Most Globally Smart!

The event is Thursday, April 17 on the Roswell Park campus. 

Registration for a team of six is only $240, and there are many ways to sponsor the event. The deadline for team registration and sponsorships for the Community World Trivia is fast approaching. Don't miss this opportunity to support a worthy cause and showcase your knowledge. Thanks to Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and Buffalo Limousine for sponsoring the event.

If you are one in the throngs of people who are adding Bluesky to their social media choices, remember to find the International Institute of Buffalo and follow us there!

Executive Director Jennifer Rizzo-Choi was a guest on Policy Outsider, a podcast from the Rockefeller Institute of Government that takes the listener “outside the halls of power to understand how decisions of law and policy shape our everyday lives.” In the program, she discusses the benefits that refugee resettlement services have in the community, and how the International of Buffalo is navigating the future.

Spectrum News Capital News Tonight host Susan Arbetter interviewed Jennifer Rizzo-Choi about how recent federal government actions have hurt refugee families and the non-profit agencies that serve them. They also discussed upstate resettlement agencies traveling to Albany to discuss the New York State Enhanced Services for Refugees Program (NYSESRP) funding.

In honor of Women’s History Month, we recognized the economic, cultural, political, and social contributions of influential immigrant and refugee women who’ve helped shape America’s vibrant tapestry. We featured:

There are many people who contribute to our successes. See who we are honoring for helping us make Western New York a better place for, and because of immigrants and refugees. Here it is, in case you missed it.

IIB helped welcome 47 New Americans from 20 countries at the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services naturalization ceremony in Buffalo earlier this month. Here is where they came from: Bangladesh, Burma, Burundi, Canada, Congo (Brazzaville), Congo (Kinshasa), Cuba, Germany, Greece, Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kuwait, Mexico, Pakistan, Somalia, United Kingdom, Vietnam, and Yemen.

In the last month, we have hosted 24 volunteers and interns, who have spent a combined 385 hours helping us out. Volunteers made significant progress organizing our warehouse space; the results are immediately apparent.

Most recently, UB Community Laboratory members helped with this long-term project. UB Community Laboratory is a student group that connects institutionally neglected communities in Buffalo with UB students and resources. They do critical work, and we are grateful for how they contributed to our organization and the wider community!

Those contributions have come from these motivated college students but also from a group at Nichols School. Led by the teacher and volunteer Stacey Kartub, this group of 9th through 12th-grade students continued to help us efficiently organize the space and build on all the work our wonderful volunteers have done in the last couple of months.

We are always looking for help in some way, so if you want to donate your time, talent, or treasure, visit our website for more information. 

Our legal department is working diligently to help immigrants and refugees navigate the complex American legal system. They help with work authorization, family reunification, and requests for asylum or temporary protective status.

Our team recently assisted an Afghan man in obtaining his green card. We also assisted him in filing applications for his wife and eight children to obtain visas, enabling them to reunite with him in the United States. 

They also assisted a married couple from Myanmar (formerly Burma) in obtaining their green cards.  

Our legal department offers a range of services for foreign-born individuals.

Contact us if you have any questions! 

The suspension of The United States Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP), the federal program that vets and brings refugee families to come to America, is still working its way through the courts. We still have refugee clients who arrived before the new administration took office. Those 112 clients are still going through the vital integration process to help them get acclimated to life in Buffalo. That includes our case managers coordinating English lessons, job training, registering the kids for school, arranging for medical care, and teaching them how to navigate our public transit system, among other things.

Click here to get a better understanding of how immigrants and refugees help our community.

The Employment Team successfully conducted four Job Club sessions throughout March. The Job Club program is a job readiness initiative designed to help clients prepare for and navigate the U.S. workforce. A total of 32 clients graduated from the March Job Club, with interpretation services provided in four languages: Afar, Arabic, Burmese, and Spanish.

One of the sessions featured a presentation on workers' rights, delivered by the New York Department of Labor. Additionally, the team assisted clients in obtaining New York State IDs and opening bank accounts through our partnership with M&T Bank.

Get more information on how our Employment Services team helps build the local economy and trains people to be exceptional employees.

It was a record-breaking Model UN, with students from 46 local high schools representing 84 countries in this fiery competition! Thanks to the over 30 college students and community members who staffed the committees. Model UN allows students to build their public speaking, research, conflict resolution, and teamwork skills by acting as diplomats for a day. Find out which teams won!

We conducted two global education training sessions for UB School of Public Health students and pediatric residents at UB Jacobs School of Medicine. These sessions provide key information on working effectively with people from all over the world.

The International Exchanges and Education team traveled to Washington, D.C., for the annual Global Ties National Meeting. Global Ties is a national network that powers individuals, communities, and nations to build trust and advance peace and prosperity through international professional exchange. The team connected with network partners, shared best practices, and visited the Embassy of Malaysia!

As you saw above, Community World Trivia is coming up quickly on Thursday, April 17, and we are still looking for teams and sponsors to join us for one of the most exciting trivia competitions in WNY! Sign up today!

Last month, the Interpreting team received 1,046 requests to provide interpreting services in 42 languages. As our clientele continues to provide language access in all modes of interpreting (onsite, on-demand phone/video, and scheduled phone/video), the Interpreting team finds creative solutions to fit each unique need.  Email interpretation@iibuff.org to discover how we can contribute to the success of your non-English speaking clients.

The Translation team completed 92 individual projects during the same time. In addition to translating informational medical, legal, and educational paperwork into English, the team managed over 50 sets of foreign personal documents such as school transcripts, marriage and birth certificates, and immunization records. Reach out to translation@iibuff.org to request translation services for yourself or your organization.

We are recruiting for the Amharic, Karen, Pashto, Somali, and Tigrinya languages; click here to apply. By sourcing talented local interpreters and translators, we continue our long history of providing first-rate language access.

Come Work with Us!

If you are interested, please take a look at our careers page.