Webinars

Reducing Barriers to Citizenship: New Research and the Need for a Partial Fee Waiver

On January 8, 2015, New Americans Campaign partners participated in a webinar that included new research by Manuel Pastor and Jared Sanchez of the University of Southern California (USC) and Patrick Oakford of the Center for American Progress (CAP). This research shows that the number of low-income immigrants naturalizing is lagging that of immigrants with higher incomes, revealing how the cost of citizenship is a systemic barrier for some populations pursuing naturalization. Learn more about these important findings and how the NAC is addressing the high cost of citizenship for LPRs.

New Research on Reducing Barriers to Citizenship 1-8-15 Webinar Powerpoint

Naturalization? There’s an App for That

In the video below, produced by Grantmakers Concerned With Immigrants and Refugees (GCIR), learn how CitizenshipWorks and “mega-workshops” are helping immigrants on the path to U.S. citizenship. CitizenshipWorks, developed by Pro Bono Net, Immigration Advocates Network, and Immigrant Legal Resource Center, offers an online platform, a mobile app, and an interactive text messaging campaign to guide immigrants through the naturalization application process. New Americans Campaign partners in Miami, with the site leadership of Catholic Legal Services Miami, are experimenting with various innovations to large-scale group processing workshop models to increase their reach and effectiveness.

In this video:

  • See a demonstration of new CitizenshipWorks tools
  • Learn about new approaches to citizenship mega-workshops
  • Understand how both can be adapted for use in various regions of the country

Want to see more? For additional webinars geared for service providers, sign up  here. 

Our Impact

  • The Campaign has completed over 3,700 naturalization workshops and clinics.
  • Over 250,000 citizenship applications completed since July 2011.

    Saved aspiring citizens and their families over $206million in legal and application fees.
  • Adopted scalable technology. MP3 players, Google Voice, and Virtual Private Network (VPN) services are being used to enhance naturalization service delivery.
  • Expanded New American Workforce (an effort to provide naturalization assistance within corporations) which has partnered with over 100 businesses across the nation, ranging from hotels in Miami to American Apparel in Los Angeles.
  • Deployed Citizenshipworks, an online tool, across the Campaign in multiple settings and languages. A newly redesigned platform guides applicants through through their citizenship application from start to finish and connects applicants to legal help at partnering non-profits.
  • Were instrumental in inspiring the US Citizenship and Immigration Service to support the Citizenship Corners initiative.
  • Created innovative partnerships with public libraries, school districts, universities, social service agencies, and employers, all of which yield not only greater numbers of applicants but also greater awareness of the naturalization process.
  • Deployed a large-scale volunteer recruitment program through an e-learning course.

    Reached diverse communities. Local partners consistently outreach and provide culturally competent and language-appropriate services.
Learn more from our
Impact Report.

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Who We're Helping

People come to America from all over the world with dreams of achieving a better life for themselves and their families and calling this great nation home. Eight million people who live, work, and pay taxes in this country are eligible for citizenship, yet only about eight percent of them naturalize each year. Find out more about these individuals and the barriers they face.Read More

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