Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina awards Immigrant Families Initiative grants to 7 organizations supporting Richland County

The Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina announced the 2018 Immigrant Families Initiative grants totaling $197,500 to thirteen organizations serving South Carolina’s immigrant and refugee populations. Immigrants represent nearly 5% of South Carolina’s total population and research shows these individuals make multiple contributions to the state’s economy sharing business, leadership, education, labor and other skills. However, a large number of immigrants and children of immigrants experience poverty across South Carolina.

The Foundation recognizes the value of welcoming and embracing newcomers who strengthen the communities across South Carolina. Rooted in the Foundation’s mission and core values of compassion and courage, the Immigrant Families Initiative was launched in 2014 dedicated to enhancing individual and family well-being through grant-making and the creation of strategic partnerships to support organizations that lift families out of poverty, and supporting efforts to build inclusive, welcoming environments for immigrants. The goal of the Immigrant Families Initiative is to improve the health, well-being and economic mobility of first and second generation immigrants, mixed status families and refugees working alongside our grantees, community stakeholders and philanthropic partners.

Funding in the Immigrant Families Initiative category is intended to assist these programs to:

1) boost resources of families living below 200% of the poverty line to meet basic needs (e.g. a safe, stable place to live, access to enough food, affordable health coverage and quality child care);
2) build inclusive, welcoming communities increasing social capital of newcomers;
3) employ two generation strategies to strengthen and support families;
4) improve educational outcomes from early childhood to postsecondary educational pathways; 5) enhance workforce and career skills for family-sustaining employment or entrepreneurship;
6) support DREAMers positioning them for success and next generation leadership;
7) bolster efforts to obtain citizenship, naturalization or other legal statuses; and
8) increase civic engagement to strengthen communities and create social change.

The Foundation is pleased to partner with the below thirteen grantees serving immigrants and refugees across South Carolina.

Lutheran Family Services in the Carolinas – Helping Refugees Reach Self-Sufficiency through Employment Program

Funding will provide employment and workforce education services to both newly arrived refugees and refugees who have arrived within the last five years. Specifically, LSC offers pre- and post-employment education, such as interviewing skills, completing job application paperwork and navigating the workplace culture.  Funds will also be used to support the agency’s efforts to increase its pool of potential new employers across the state (particularly in the Midlands and Charleston areas) to enable more refugees to find suitable jobs within a shorter time. (Richland and Charleston Counties)

My Amigos Bilingual Education Center – Living Diversity Through Play

Funding will support the purchase of multicultural and diversity resources for the new preschool site scheduled to open for the 2018-2019 school year, as well as to purchase a smaller number of new materials for current classrooms. Items to be purchased include bilingual and multicultural books, dolls and figurines representing a variety of races, multicultural dress up clothes, and additional bilingual materials to complement current lesson plans. (Lexington and Richland Counties)

PASOs – Building Stronger Latino Communities Together Program

Funding will support the enhancement and expansion of the grassroots leadership training program for Community Health Workers which is founded on the best practice model used extensively throughout Latin America and considered the culturally appropriate way of reaching the Latino population and other disadvantaged or hard to reach populations.  Community Health Workers support immigrant families in improving their health, education and self-reliance while supporting PASOs mission of building “Healthy Latino communities contributing to a stronger South Carolina”.  Funding will also allow for two statewide leadership events. (Statewide)

Richland Library – Mano a Mano Program

Funding will support expertly trained tutors, comprehensive assessments and integrated progress monitoring to achieve more than an incremental changes for students at the greatest risk of falling behind their English-speaking peers.  These funds will also provide support for the parents of tutored students, providing them with tools and skills necessary to reduce language and societal barriers when communicating with teachers and other school staff.  Families will also receive support and guidance on how to help their children succeed in school through learning kits and supplies. (Richland County)

Richland School District 2 – Si Se Puede’s “Student Interpreters” Program

Funding will support the Student Interpreter (SI) program which aims to bolster student success through developing students’ professional and academic skills in interpretation and translation. The SI program also keeps students engaged in school in order to promote on-time graduation as well as providing some program participants with the opportunity to open their own interpreting businesses post-graduation. (Richland County)

SC Appleseed Legal Justice Center – Power of Dreams: Leadership & Civic Engagement Program

Funding with support the development of a leadership and civic engagement training program open to undocumented individuals, DACA recipients, permanent residents, and US citizens from immigrant families.  Focus of the program is to strengthen participants’ civic engagement and organizing knowledge while providing a space to deepen relationships and collaborations.  Short term goal of registering eligible people to vote and impacting voter turnout among new and unlikely voters in South Carolina. (Richland, Lexington, and Newberry Counties)

Student Action with Farmworkers – Into the Fields/Hacia Los Campos

Funding will support developing the leadership of young people so they can not only link farmworkers to services in their communities, but also work in solidarity with farmworkers to advocate for policy change and organize their workplaces and educate them about social justice.  SAF addresses the direct needs of migrant farmworkers, while developing the leadership of young people from farmworker families. (Statewide)

 

About the Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina

The Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina, established in 1996, is a ministry of the Sisters of Charity Health System. The Foundation is committed to addressing the needs of the poor and underserved in all 46 South Carolina counties, and strategically uses resources to reduce poverty through action, advocacy and leadership.