McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) — The federal government is offering a new grant program to train instructors to help migrants attain U.S. citizenship.
The Citizenship and Integration Training Academy is offering grants to nonprofits, municipalities and school districts totaling up to $2.4 million from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to train instructors.
“Through this program, we can help build organizations’ capacity to help immigrants improve their English language skills, increase their knowledge of U.S. history and government, and gain the tools to become successful and responsible U. S. citizens,” USCIS Director Ur Jaddou said in a statement.
Applications for the Fiscal Year 2024 grant opened on Wednesday and close on July 12, according to the agency.
The agency expects to award seven grants of no more than $400,000 as part of this community development grant. Eligible applicants include:
School districts
Municipal governments
Nonprofits
State governments
Public and state-controlled higher education institutions
County governments
Native American tribal governments and organizations
Public housing authorities
This new training academy is an expansion of the Citizenship and Integration Grant Program, which began in 2009 and has awarded more than $55 million in grants, the agency says.
“The goal of the Citizenship and Integration Grant Program is to expand the availability of high-quality citizenship preparation services for lawful permanent residents across the nation and to provide opportunities for immigrants to gain the knowledge and skills necessary to integrate into the fabric of American society,” according to the agency’s website.
Applicants to this new training academy grant must not have previously received USCIS grant funding. The training program is expected to span a three-year period and include instruction in citizenship education, technical assistance, and naturalization application information.
“USCIS encourages new organizations to apply as part of USCIS’ effort to fulfill our mandate of expanding the availability of high-quality citizenship education preparation services in underserved areas,” according to the application information.
More information can be found here.
Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.
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