INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF NEW ENGLAND

Lowell field office: iine's lowell site helps up to 8,000 immigrants and refugees each year access public benefits; obtain basic necessities such as food, housewares, and clothing; learn english; enter the workforce; and apply for immigration legal benefits. Iine works with local residents, church groups, and other volunteers to secure in-kind gifts of items in support of new and resettled refugees and other vulnerable, extremely low income immigrant populations.case management services iine staff offer extensive orientation to ensure clients are able to navigate and participate in their new communities. We also help remove barriers to accessing support: we enroll refugees and other immigrants with humanitarian status in public benefits programs, refugee cash assistance, and healthcare programs based on eligibility; connect them with local resources; help them secure employment and advanced skills training; and help remove other barriers to health, education, resources, and employment.employment services and vocational skills training iine staff help employable refugees, asylees and other immigrant populations find durable, gainful employment as quickly as possible after their arrivals in entry-level and career laddering positions. We assess each refugee's skills and interests, provide workforce orientation, prepare clients for interviews, and help place them in jobs with local employers. Over the years, we have built a network of employer relationships to support refugee and immigrant job preparation and placement. Iine lowell also offers the certified nursing assistant (cna) for success and the medical assistant (ma) for success programs through which iine provides contextualized english language instruction, soft-skills training and workforce readiness training to those seeking certification and job placement as certified nurse aides or medical assistants respectively.adult basic education iine's lowell site offers four levels of english language virtual and hybrid instruction: beginner, low intermediate, high intermediate, and advanced, with a focus on vocational preparation and digital literacy skills development. Representing more than 50 countries of origin, our participants came to the u.s. With a wide variety of english language skills, from little or no english literacy to those who were advanced and seeking to improve their fluency.legal immigration services iine's legal services team provides lowell-area immigrants with trustworthy and affordable assistance in applying for immigration relief. Legal services support a range of legal immigration forms unique to the immigrant community, such as status adjustment, work authorization, family reunification, and citizenship. We serve 1,500-2,000 individuals through our three-site legal services program each year.youth programming our lowell youth program team pairs refugee youth with community mentors to support life skills development, high school completion, preparation and application for college, and work exploration and entry. Other programming for youth ages 13-25 includes skill-building workshops, tutoring, and art and recreational activities, and youth goal supports out-of-school immigrant youth aged 16-24 by offering education, soft and hard skills training, and career development opportunities.volunteer program volunteers site and interns at iine's lowell provide thousands of hours of program and client support. Volunteers and interns support cultural orientation classes, provide english tutoring, lead skills and financial literacy workshops, organize supply drives, deliver food donations to clients, host community dinners, and more. Iine's three-site resettle together community sponsorship program trains groups of volunteers to be paired with a refugee family and support their resettlement and help them integrate into their communities.