USCIS Announces Grant Opportunities for Citizenship Programs

 
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services of the Department of Homeland Security (USCIS) has announced that it is making $7 million in grants available for citizenship and immigrant integration programs across the country.  
 
These grants provide a tremendous opportunity to Somali Bantu community based organizations: Somali Bantu refugees are generally approaching their five year from date of arrival periods.  Somali Bantu refugees, however, struggle with the test due to high illiteracy and low rates of English proficiency.
 
The competitive grants program has two separate tracks.  The first grant will strengthen locally-based citizenship preparation programs. The second grant will increase the capacity of members or affiliates of national, regional, or statewide organizations to offer citizenship services in underserved communities. USCIS expects to announce an estimated 50 award recipients in September 2010.
 
The full grant announcement is available at grants.gov.  Mandatory letters of intent are due by March 26th, while full proposals are due by April 30th.  USCIS grant program contacts are found on the full announcement.