Refugee and Asylee Services

African Community Center of Denver

850 Holly Street
Denver, CO 80220

Tel: (303) 399-4500
Fax: (303)399-4502

http://www.africancommunitycenter.net

The African Community Center (ACC) is Denver’s newest Refugee Resettlement program which welcomes newcomers who have had to flee persecution within their home country. ECDC/ACC conducts educational and social service programs that help newcomers resettle in their new communities and acculturate; recover from past trauma; gain personal independence and economic self-sufficiency; and quickly become able participants and productive, contributing members of American society.

Refugee Resettlement:  The African Community Center/ECDC offers a variety of refugee resettlement program services during the first 12 months of their arrival:

Case Management Services
Housing
Employment Services
Cultural Adjustment Services

 

The Agency for Human Rights and Community Relations

201 W. Colfax Avenue, Dept. 1102
Denver, Colorado 80202
720-913-8450
720-913-8475 TTY
HumanRights@denvergov.org
http://www.denvergov.org/HumanRights
Click here to download the Resource Guide for Immigrants and Refugees.

The Agency for Human Rights and Community Relations (HRCR) was established by ordinance in 1948. The agency empowers communities to address local issues and strives to promote equal opportunity and protects the rights of all people regardless of race, color, creed, gender, sexual orientation, age or disability. HRCR addresses issues concerning:
Older adults
Racial, ethnic and religious minorities
Women
People with disabilities
Gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered people
Immigrants and refugees

Ecumenical Refugee and Immigration Services, Inc.

1600 Downing St. Suite 400
Denver, CO 80218

General Number: 303-860-0128

www.ersden.org

Ecumenical Refugee and Immigration Services (ERIS) helps to resettle refugees and asylees who are legally in Colorado (by Church World Service and Episcopal Migration Ministries), by providing them assistance with educational needs, family and social services, medical attention, employment, and cultural orientation. The main goal of ERIS is to help refugees become self-sufficient and independent as quickly as possible. ERIS has been working with refugees in this manner since 1979, resettling about 600 new refugees annually.

How does ERIS make resources available to refugees/asylees?
Each refugee/asylee individual or family is assigned an ERIS Case Worker who has primary responsibility for the refugee and family. The Case Worker, or "sponsor", is the most important source of information and assistance during the first months of adjustment to life in the US. An agency representative meets refugees at the airport, arranges for housing, and prepares a resettlement plan that includes initial contact with governmental services and employment agencies. Their sponsor helps them get acclimated, helps them obtain a Social Security number, and introduces them to employment and Social Service agents.

What services and benefits does the US Government provide to refugees/asylees who are being resettled in the US?
• Interest-free loan to pay for travel the US.
• Eight months Refugee Cash Assistance (RCA) and Refugee Medical Assistance (RMA) food stamps
• Housing assistance, furnishings, food, and clothing
• Social Security Card
• School registration for children
• Referrals for medical appointments and other support services
• Employment services
Case management through community-based non-profit organizations, such as ERIS, to promote adjustment of status from refugee to legal permanent resident.

Does ERIS provide refugees/asylees housing?
Federal funds for a refugee/asylee's housing are transferred to ERIS staff who in turn obtains suitable housing arrangement for the subject refugee prior to their arrival in the US.

Does ERIS provide refugees/asylees food?
ERIS does provide food for refugees/asylees for the first 30 days. Thereafter we refer them to church, charitable and social services organizations through which they can obtain temporary aid and food stamps until they get settled and become self-sustaining.

Does ERIS provide refugees/asylees employment opportunities?
Yes, ERIS has in-house Employment Specialists, and we work with numerous employers throughout the greater Denver Metropolitan area to gain employment for our refugees/asylees.

Does ERIS provide refugees/asylees instruction in English?
Volunteers from the Colorado Refugees English-as-a-Second-Language (CRESL) organization support ERIS in providing English instruction to our refugees/asylees. All employable refugees attend Emily Griffith Opportunity School for daily ESL classes.

What family members may accompany a refugee to the US if approved?
Generally, only a spouse and unmarried children under the age of 21 may accompany the "principal applicant". Other relatives may qualify for resettlement in the US if they meet US refugee criteria themselves.

Lutheran Family Services of Colorado

1600 Downing Street, Suite 600
Denver, CO 80218-1551
Phone: 303-980-5400
Toll Free: 877-372-1264
Fax: 303-980-8588

www.lfsco.org
refugee@lfsco.org

This agency provides services, support, and encouragement to newcomers as they adjust to life in the United States. In many cases, LFS works together with a cosponsoring congregation or community organization to provide basic services. Refugees and asylees may be eligible for the following services at no cost.

Case Management: social service enrollment, health/mental health services, housing referrals, household items and clothing, immigration legal services.

Employment Services: job placement, job coaching, cash assistance, English language training, pre-employment training.

Colorado Refugee Services Program (CRSP), Department of Human

Services, State of Colorado

789 Sherman St., Suite 250
Denver, CO 80203
Phone: (303) 863-8211

http://stateboard.cdhs.state.co.us/oss/Refugee/refugee_services_program.htm

Our goal is to ensure effective resettlement and promote refugee self-sufficiency. The Refugee Program is a full service program, under a centralized case management system. In existence since 1980, the program is 100% federally funded, and services are provided directly by ten staff, and 15 public and private contractors. CRSP is a part of the Colorado Refugee Network Council, a services network comprised of more than 100 people, which assists in planning and policy. Over two-thirds of the staff are multi-lingual/multi-cultural, to enable communication with our non-English speaking clientele.

PROGRAM SERVICES

Employment: Refugee program staff and contractors provide assessment, counseling, job development, job referrals, placement, cultural bridging with employers, resume assistance, assistance to employers such as interpretation and translation, and possible assistance with the purchase of personal tools and equipment.

Case Management: Bilingual, professional staff and contractors provide case management service planning, referral and follow-up to 1,500 clients annually.

Supportive Social Service: Refugee Program staff and contractors provide counseling, interpretation and acculturation services. Day care, mental health services, elder services, foster care and protective service assistance is also available.

Transitional Cash Assistance: Through contracts with private resettlement agencies, the program provides cash assistance for up to eight months from the date of arrival in the U.S. This assistance is based on financial need.

Medical Assistance: Refugees receive medical assistance, health screenings, assessments and follow-up, interpretation and transportation. Information on cultural differences is provided to refugees and service providers.

Education and Training: The Refugee Program provides classroom, in-home and tutorial English as a Second Language instruction, vocational training, orientation to the world of work, and tuition for skills recertification. One thousand refugees receive instruction and/or vocational training annually.

Rocky Mountain Survivors Center (RMSC)

1547 Gaylord St.

Denver, CO 80206

Phone: 303-321-3221 x 213 or x 203

rmsc@rmscdenver.org

http://rmscdenver.org

Rocky Mountain Survivors Center (RMSC) is a nonprofit organization that assists survivors of torture and war trauma, and their families, to heal and rebuild their lives. The center offers asylum legal representation, healthcare and psychosocial services, is actively pursuing building the capacity of other providers to respond to the needs of torture survivors, and is building a community development component to the work. Some services are provided at the center by RMSC staff and other services are referred out to community providers after an assessment is completed at RMSC. All services are provided at no cost to participants.

PROGRAM SERVICES

Healthcare: The Healthcare program at RMSC is a joint project with the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center School of Nursing (UCHSC-SON). Students from the undergraduate and graduate nursing programs provide direct services to participants at RMSC and in the community.

Mental Health: The goal of mental health services is to address emotional, cognitive, psychosocial, and somatic consequences of torture and/or war trauma; and to support strengths and empower participants to build new futures in the community.

Psychosocial Services: Caseworkers help participants identify goals and find resources. English language classes, introduction to work groups, networking in expatriate communities, gathering information about schools, and learning about parenting and safety represent some goals.

Legal Services: Over 85% of RMSC's participants are asylum-seekers who are in need of legal representation as they apply for asylum, withholding of removal and Convention Against Torture relief. RMSC is one of only three non-profit agencies in Colorado that provides free legal representation to asylum-seekers who cannot afford private attorneys.

Interpreter/Translation Bank (ITB): RMSC has a comprehensive ITB formed to serve torture survivors and their families from all over the world. Currently the ITB has more than 50 active professionally trained interpreters /translators who are providing quality services in more than 35 languages in legal, health and psychosocial settings.

Culture Broker Program (CBP): Through our CBP, experienced interpreters may receive further training and join our emerging core of culture brokers (CBs). CBs are outreached-oriented members of refugee communities who communicate across cultures in our health systems, schools, courts, and between refugee communities and the "mainstream."

Volunteer Program: Volunteer opportunities focus on five major areas of activities, including: special event planning; group support; participant support activities; resource development and research, and office and administrative support.