USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) has announced the start of the application period for the Citizenship and Integration Grant Program, a 16-year-old initiative that supports citizenship preparation programs across the United States. The program aims to assist legal immigrants with the process of naturalization, providing funding to organizations that offer services related to citizenship education, English language skills, U.S. history, and civics.
The 2024 program offers up to $10 million in grants, with a focus on promoting civic integration and citizenship preparation. According to USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou, this initiative is designed to empower organizations to help legal immigrants pursue citizenship, with a specific emphasis on reaching remote, underserved, or isolated communities. This year, USCIS aims to ensure that eligible organizations focusing on these communities are aware of the funding opportunities and that grant funds are directed toward historically underserved groups.
Under the program, USCIS plans to award grants to up to 40 organizations, with each grant totaling up to $300,000 for a two-year period. This funding opportunity is intended for public or nonprofit organizations offering both citizenship instruction and naturalization application services to lawful permanent residents. The deadline for applications is June 21, 2024, with USCIS expected to announce award recipients in September 2024.
Since its inception in 2009, the USCIS Citizenship and Integration Grant Program has provided $155 million in funding through 644 grants to immigrant-serving organizations. These organizations have supported over 300,000 immigrants across 41 states and the District of Columbia with citizenship preparation services. For fiscal year 2024, USCIS received congressional appropriations to continue this funding program.
Organizations interested in applying for this grant program can find more information and submit their applications through the grants.gov website. USCIS encourages prospective applicants to visit the website well in advance to complete the necessary registration process. For additional information, interested parties can contact the USCIS Office of Citizenship via email at citizenshipgrantprogram@uscis.dhs.gov.
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