A message from the Virginia State Refugee Coordinator
As I reflect on the Virginia refugee resettlement program’s challenges and accomplishments in 2015, I am struck by a number of realities about our program. Now in its 32nd year, the pro- gram has matured. Service provider agencies across the Commonwealth have long and enviable track records in resettling refugees and providing quality services to them. We have built a strong resettlement program – step by step, year by year. And Virginia’s resettlement program has “evolved” as well. We have experienced changes that have included constrained budgets for service delivery, the challenge of arrivals who are coming sicker and often, with few job skills, and we are working hard to ensure that we are connecting with mainstream community services that can be valuable resources to our most vulnerable newcomers. Additionally, we are putting an increased focus on the involvement of the entire community to gain better information and feedback on the impact of refugees to Virginia’s communities, so that our partnerships with key stakeholders can be strengthened and of mutual benefit.
2015 was a full-bodied year in terms of refugee arrivals to the Commonwealth, and our numbers included many asylees, secondary migrants and Special Immigrant Visa persons as well. Our service provider agencies did an outstanding job finding employment, offering English as a Second language training, and providing support services to ensure solid resettlement from day one for each refugee and his/her family. I am proud of the close and collegial working relationship that my office has with our resettlement agencies, and I am especially proud of the working collaboration that I have with the State Health Coordinator, Jill Grumbine, on the important issue of refugee health and the assurance that we address all health needs of our newcomers through planning and effective use of resettlement funds.
I am confident, going forward, that Virginia will continue to be a good place for refugees to resettle. We will work to continue to strengthen our program by looking at new ways of service delivery, by preparing refugees for the workforce demands of the new millennium, and by addressing critical unmet needs of refugees coming to Virginia. It is my privilege to serve as Virginia’s State Refugee Coordinator and to be a part of this important humanitarian program.
Kathy A. Cooper
Virginia State Refugee Coordinator