Successful New Americans
Project (SNAP)

SNAP provides institutional-strengthening, coalition-building, research and information dissemination services to local Mutual Assistance Associations (MAAs) in order to strengthen the refugee and immigrant individuals, families, and communities they serve. SNAP also ensures that findings from the project are used to strengthen success-oriented programs among other refugees and immigrants. It will do this by producing, distributing, and publicizing a multilingual research report on success — and the barriers to success — among its target populations. Major funding for this program is from the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR).

Presently, Project Year 3 is dedicated to sharing lessons and best practice models learned from the first two project years through the provision of training and technical assistance (T & TA) to ten (10) refugee and immigrant MAAs throughout the nation. Local SNAP T & TA consultants are assigned to MAAs to:

1. Assist the MAA to conduct an organizational assessment.
2. Assist the MAA to research community attitudes and needs (via surveys, focus groups, and/or interviews).
3. Assist the MAA to develop T & TA plans for the project year.
4. Promote grassroots activities: Work closely with MAA partner to strengthen clients' access to economic, educational, health, or social services by strengthening linkages between clients and other service providers in the community through workshops, training or seminars.
5. Promote collaboration building: Design and implement activities that promote dialogue and communication between MAA partner's clients and service providers, public policy officials, media, or organizations
6. Increase fundraising: Assess MAA partner's funding capacity and implement strategies to help diversify funding sources and improve grant and proposal writing capability.
7. Strengthen institutional capacity: Design and implement activities to improve MAA partner's institutional capacity, such as the evaluation, development, and training of Board and staff members and research, and development of programs.

Snap Year 3 Partners

1. Cambodian Community Development, Inc., (CCDI) Oakland, CA.
2. Cambodian Association of Illinois (CAI), Chicago, IL.
3. Hmong American Women's Association (HAWA), Milwaukee, WI.
4. Lao Assistance Center of Minnesota (LACMN), Minneapolis, MN.
5. Newcomer Community Service Center (NCSC), Washington, D.C.
6. Vietnamese American Civic Association (VACA), Dorchester, MA.
7. Wichita Indochinese Center (WIC), Wichita, KS.
8. African Community and Refugee Center (ACRC), Clarkston, GA.
9. Haitian Organization of Women (HOW), Homestead FL.
10. Iraqi House, Chicago, IL.

Additional partners include Hmong National Development, Inc. (Washington, DC), and the Southeast Asian Community Resource Center (Rancho Cordova, CA).

The SNAP final written report (to be published in September 2002), will be rich in quantitative and qualitative data, and will include documentation and analysis of refugee success stories and best practices in successful integration. The report will be an invaluable tool for the formation of future programs focused on stimulating economic and professional success among Southeast Asian Americans, refugees, and immigrants from other parts of the world. It will also be useful to policy makers involved in the resettlement of refugees and immigrants in the United States.

At the end of Project Year 3, MAAs will have concrete products — such as more effective and efficient programs, administrative systems, and community advisory boards, and expansion of funding sources and collaboration networks — to demonstrate the effectiveness of the T & TA process.

• National Crime Prevention Council SNAP Article — Article from the NCPC's Catalyst Newsletter detailing SNAP information.
• State Farm®: Generous Supporters of SEARAC and Southeast Asian American Communities — Article with additional and detailed information on how State Farm® has supported SEARAC.
• Former Refugees Forge New Paths Towards Success — Initial press release about the project.

Snap Year 3 Partners

Cambodian Community Development, Inc., (CCDI) Oakland, CA. Executive Director, Lucy Dul. SNAP consultant, Michael Corbett. CCDI was founded in 1997 to provide social services to and integrate Oakland's Cambodian refugee population. CCDI programs include: employment training, English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) classes, mental health services, youth leadership, tobacco control, Cambodian culture and literacy classes, a monthly legal clinic, and support services to assist families transition from welfare to the working force. Cambodian Community Development, Inc. (CCDI) 1900 Fruitvale Ave. Suite 3B Oakland, CA 94601 Tel: (510) 535-6120 Fax: (510) 534-5438 Email: ccdincambo@yahoo.com www.ccdi.org [-back to list-] Cambodian Association of Illinois (CAI), Chicago, IL. Executive Director, Mr. Kompha Seth. SNAP consultants, Vernon Crowell and Joyce Marks. Established in 1976, CAI provides essential social services to thousands of Cambodian refugees and their families in Chicago. Current programs include adult literacy program, arts and culture, children and youth, citizenship, computer literacy, employment, family strengthening, and a senior program. CAI has grown tremendously since its inception and has 19 on-site staff, 75 volunteers. Its accomplishments include the purchase of its own office space, and plans to construct and open a Killing Fields Memorial and Museum in the near future. Cambodian Association of Illinois (CAI) 2831 West Lawrence Avenue Chicago, IL 60625 Tel: (773) 878-7090 Fax: (773) 878-5299 www.cambodian-association.org [-back to list-] Hmong American Women's Association (HAWA), Milwaukee, WI. Executive Director, Christa Xiong. Consultant, the Nonprofit Center of Milwaukee. HAWA is the only MAA in Milwaukee that focuses on the issues of Hmong women and girls. Created in 1993, HAWA received 501(c) 3 status in 1996, and began operating with a staff in 1997. Christa Xiong has been HAWA's Executive Director since January 2002 and seeks to expand HAWA's services and increase its institutional capacity, primarily in the fields of funding and resource development, financial management, public relations, and technology assistance. Currently it offers a youth program, family strengthening programs (parenting classes, advocacy, and cultural services), and leadership and skill development workshops. Hmong American Women's Association (HAWA) Inc. 2414 W. Vliet Street Milwaukee, WI 53205 Tel: (414) 342-0858 Fax: (414) 342-0860 [-back to list-] Lao Assistance Center of Minnesota (LACMN), Minneapolis, MN. Executive Director, Mr. Sinh "Sunny" Chanthanouvong. SNAP consultant, Strategeries. Established in 1983, LACMN offers a wide array of social services such as citizenship classes, legal assistance, employment training, and youth programming to more than 18,600 Laotians in the Twin Cities. Lao Assistance Center of MN (LACMN) 1015 Olson Memorial Highway Minneapolis, Minnesota 55405 Tel: (612) 374-4967 Fax: (612) 374-4821 Email: laoassistance@qwest.net www.laocenter.org [-back to list-] Newcomer Community Service Center (NCSC), Washington, D.C. Executive Director, Mr. Vilay Chaleunrath. SNAP consultant, Ms. Lyn McCoy. NCSC was also a SNAP partner during project years one and two. NCSC, formerly the Indochinese Community Center (ICC), was established in 1978 to serve Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese refugees in the Washington D.C. Metro Region. In 1999, ICC changed its name to NCSC to reflect change in its client base from a predominantly Southeast Asian to a more international and diverse clientele. NCSC now assists refugees and immigrants from around the world with all of their resettlement needs, as well as helping refugees and immigrants to become economically self-sufficient. Newcomers Community Service Center (NCSC) 1628 16th St, NW Washington, D.C. 20009-3099 Tel: (202) 462-4330 Fax: (202) 462-2774 www.newcomerservice.org [-back to list-] Vietnamese American Civic Association (VACA), Dorchester, MA. Executive Director, Mr. Duy Pham. SNAP consultants, Marguerita Reczycki, Carolyn Leung, and Ms. Phitsamay Sychitkokhong. VACA has been providing social services for the Boston area's Vietnamese population since 1987. One consultant will focus specifically on VACA's mental health programming, and the other consultant(s) will focus on broader organizational issues. Mr. Pham recommended Ms. Reczycki to work as VACA's Health Program consultant. Ms. Reczycki brings thirty years of experience doing program development work, consultation and training, and psychotherapy with refugees on the local, national, and international levels. In addition, Ms. Reczycki has worked with VACA before, so she is quite familiar with its strengths and in what areas it could benefit from technical assistance. Vietnamese American Civic Association (VACA) 1452 Dorchester Avenue, 3rd Floor Dorchester, MA 02125 Tel: (617) 288-7344 Fax: (617) 288-4860 [-back to list-] Wichita Indochinese Center (WIC), Wichita, KS. Executive Director, Mr. Mohan Kambampati. Consultants, Dr. Keith Williamson and Floyd Hansen. WIC serves not just the Southeast Asian population in Wichita, but also refugees from Bosnia, Somalia, Sudan, Iraq, Iran, and the former Soviet Union. WIC social services include: translation, transportation, ESL classes, job training and placement, citizenship classes, a summer youth employment program, an anti-truancy program, and a life skills course for youth. Wichita Indochinese Center (WIC) 2502 E. Douglas Wichita, KS 67214-4514 Tel: (316) 689-8729 Fax: (316) 689-8274 [-back to list-] African Community and Refugee Center (ACRC), Clarkston, GA. Executive Director, Mohammed Maye. Consultant, Karl Williams of K Systems. ACRC was recommended to SEARAC by the Ethiopian Community Development Council (ECDC). ACRC was founded in 1996 in order to help African refugees and immigrants gain access to resettlement services in a culturally sensitive manner. Currently, ACRC provides programming for elderly community members, employment services, resettlement services, after-school programs and a summer youth institute, health education, housing services, and projects for special populations, including the Lost Boys of Sudan. African Community Refugee Center (ACRC) 964 N. Indian Creek Drive Suite A1 Clarkston, GA 30021 Tel: (404) 298-3144 Fax: (404) 298-3150 [-back to list-] Haitian Organization of Women (HOW), Homestead, FL. Executive Director, Ms. Michelene Ducena. Consultants, the Neighborhood Center of Miami and Marc Villain. HOW was founded in 1989 in order to provide social services to the Haitian population in Homestead and Florida City, the third largest Haitian group in Miami-Dade county. HOW's mission is to, "develop economic avenues where economically disadvantaged families of individuals can be provided realistic opportunities to participate in the economic mainstream of society." HOW's current programs include an after school and delinquency prevention program, a micro-loan/new business start-up program, domestic violence counseling and outreach, and acculturation and cultural activities. Haitian Organization of Women (HOW) 162 SW 1st Ave Homestead, FL 33030 Tel: (305) 245-8158 Fax: (305) 245-9062 [-back to list-] Iraqi House, Chicago, IL. Program Coordinator, Mr. Rahman Minahi. Consultant, Selma Brown of the Community Renewal Society. The Iraqi House, an affiliate of the Washington D.C.-based Iraq Foundation, was established in 1998 in order to help Chicago's Iraqi population access local social services. The Iraqi House is involved in advocacy activities, community strengthening programs, and a women's program that helps Iraqi women get involved in community affairs. Al Bayt Al-Iraqi (Iraqi House) 3334 W. Lawrence Avenue Chicago, IL 60625 Tel: (773) 583-1755 Fax: (773) 583-1839 Email: Albaytiraq@aol.com [-back to list-]