Greetings from Ellen
Dear Friends,
The time for immigration reform is now and what a time it is! Polls continue to show that a large majority of voters support an immigration reform plan that includes a path to citizenship. Here at the International Institute of the Bay Area, we have recently been invited to participate in two new collaborative efforts to help Legal Permanent Residents become citizens. We value this opportunity to support individuals and families in their journey to a more secure and certain future. We value our partners and the collaborative work we engage in and we value you who support the work and mission of the International Institute of the Bay Area!
A DREAMer's New Found Hope
Crystal was brought to the U.S. when she was two. The fact that she lacked immigration legal status did not stop her from pursuing her dreams. Throughout high school, she took advanced placement classes. Acceptance at UC Davis, she says, was “when I had my happiest and most anxiety-filled day” since realizing her lack of immigration legal status would be an impediment. Her parents worked hard to help Crystal financially, and in 2011 she graduated with a double major in Psychology and Spanish. She dreamed of attending graduate school and working with at-risk youth. For a year, she worked full-time as a waitress. In 2012, she started her Master’s Program at Cal State East Bay so she could help others. To obtain her Masters, she was required to do a counseling internship at an agency where she knew she could not work because of her immigration status. When DACA was implemented in 2012, Crystal came to IIBA for assistance with the application process. The staff at IIBA helped her complete her paperwork, and her application for DACA was approved. Crystal sums it up nicely, “it was life changing. I never thought this would happen.”
IIBA in the News
The Napa Valley Community Foundation invited IIBA to participate in an ambitious collaborative initiative to bring much-needed legal services to residents of Napa. Click here for more information.
This work supports legal permanent residents who wish to become citizens. Citizenship and the pursuit of citizenship bring communities together in myriad ways and have long-term, positive implications for individuals, their families, and the broader community
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IIBA was selected to be part of a three- year public-private partnership to help eligible residents become U.S. citizens; the number of people we can help is estimated to be 100,000. This initiative is funded by the City of San Francisco and local foundations.
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Over 25 immigration legal service providers banded together to form the Bay Area DACA collaborative. IIBA leads this ten-county effort to assist eligible DREAMers to apply for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). These services will ensure that eligible youth have access to high-quality, low-cost legal services.
Why DACA Matters
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is a policy by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to allow certain young immigrants who do not have lawful immigration status, and who came to the U.S. as children, to remain in the U.S. temporarily. To date, nearly 500,000 youth have been granted DACA status. Why does this matter? It matters because now nearly half a million youth no longer live in daily fear of deportation. It matters because nearly half a million youth now have work authorization and can apply for driver licenses. It matters because it is a step towards acknowledging that these youth matter. IIBA has worked with countless of these individuals who have shared their stories of courage and determination. They have the capability and drive to be doctors, engineers, and community leaders. DACA opens the door to these possibilities.
Meet Our Staff
Irving Pineda was born in Zihuatanejo, Mexico and came to the U.S. when he was six years old. Irving attended Santa Clara University and then graduated
from the University of California, Merced in 2010 with a B.A. in Political Science. Irving joined the IIBA team in March as Outreach Coordinator for DACA. Irving has a myriad of talents and interests and in his “off hours” is pursuing acting. You can see clips of his work on YouTube.
Volunteer Spotlight
Meet Susan Russell. When she’s not competing as a show jumper in equestrian competitions, this former Program Director at Stanford Research Institute International can often be found hard at work at IIBA's Redwood City office as a volunteer. Of course, Susan is no stranger to hard work—she holds three Stanford degrees.
When Susan retired, she turned her attention to a different type of hard work: serving others. At IIBA, Susan is particularly helpful because she is bilingual in Spanish. Aside from helping IIBA clients with their citizenship applications, she can also be found sifting tirelessly through piles of documents in preparation for DACA applications. When asked what has been the best part of volunteering with IIBA Susan replied, “Helping all these deserving people. I feel like I am doing a worthwhile thing and I get to follow my passion” As Susan points out, “you really need to do things you like to do and I am lucky to have found IIBA since they focus on such a worthy cause."
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