After arriving from Afghanistan as a Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holder in July 2020, Shallah Shaiq began the process of building a new life in the U.S. with her husband and teenage son. Shallah initially earned a bachelor’s degree in law from Afghanistan and carries a passion for working with her Afghan peers through communications. Shallah felt determined to acquire the skills she needed to develop her resume and continue her education in the U.S.  so she could continue to support women’s rights within an Afghan immigrant organization.  

The IRC in Salt Lake City partnered with the Rape Recovery Center to increase education opportunities focused on sexual violence prevention education, focusing on engaging groups of men and boys to access vital resources and engage in group discussion.

Sarah, a casework intern, has been working at the IRC since the beginning of the school year! She has worked on planning bus orientations for newly arrived families, and bringing about robust processes to serve newly arrived refugees well.

Housing volunteers at the IRC in Salt Lake City are crucial to the resettlement process! When refugees arrive in Utah, they are able to walk into a furnished home with all their essential needs to start out their lives here. Learn more about members of our housing support team: Jill Baker, Rob Kain, and Holli Turner.

Civic engagement and voter registration education is a strategic priority of the IRC in Salt Lake City. Helping refugees and new Americans to gain, maintain, and expand their voice within the community is central to the IRC’s global Strategy100. Hear from some of our staff about what is new with civic engagement and advocacy.

The IRC in Atlanta’s partnership with the Technology Career Program (TCP) at TechBridge—an Information Technology (IT) training course—has helped more than 20 refugees and immigrants to gain a head start in the rapidly growing technology industry over the past year. One recent TCP graduate, Maiwand—who was evacuated from Afghanistan last fall—has gone above and beyond in his commitment to the program, and shares with us below his journey to rebuilding his life and career here in Atlanta.