IMMIGRATION AND SOCIAL SERVICES

The Institute provides low-cost legal immigration and naturalization counseling and technical assistance. It is accredited and has accredited staff to assist individuals through the immigration process, including adjustment of status, naturalization, relative petitions, and travel documents. In addition, the Institute provides social services that focus on the needs of immigrant clients and efforts to educate the public about immigration issues.

The Institute is also involved in providing outreach to victims of human trafficking in the greater Milwaukee area and Wisconsin. Its role is two fold - educating the community on this issue and providing assistance to the victims, which include safe shelter, food, clothing, medical care, counseling, and employment.

 

REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT

The Institute is one of only four social service agencies that resettle refugees in Wisconsin, both individuals who have a relative who have petitioned for them and those who have no family ties to anyone in Wisconsin. The resettlement process involves assisting the individual with their housing, employment, medical, transportation, and educational needs. The Institute works cooperatively with the US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants who advocates on behalf of uprooted people regardless of their nationality, race, religion, ideology, or social group.

 

EDUCATIONAL SERVICES

Conducting numerous classes, seminars, workshops, and cooperative ventures, the Institute strives to educate the community on international, cultural, and ethnic issues and topics. The well-known Holiday Folk Fair International is one of the many programs that the Institute produces, which raises the level of awareness and tolerance for cultural difference in our own community.

INFORMATION CLEARINGHOUSE

The Institute is a primary community source of information on international, cultural, ethnic, protocol, folkloric, and immigrant and refugee social service issues. This information is an invaluable tool for the community at large and for businesses that operate in the global market.

The Institute provides information and coordinates the activities of several programs including:

· Sister Cities International, which has as its mission to promote peace through mutual respect, understanding and cooperation­one individual, one community at a time;

· and the Japan America Society of Wisconsin, whose goal is to strengthen relations between Wisconsin and Japan through better understanding of each other's culture, traditions, and values.

CITIZEN DIPLOMACY

The Institute promotes opportunities for all Milwaukee and Wisconsin residents to be citizen diplomats and affirms the indispensable value of citizen involvement in international relations. The Institute does this by being part of the nationwide network of 92 cities that provides professional programming services to international professionals and leaders of the International Visitor Leadership Program of the US Department of State. Through this program, these leaders are provided with the opportunity to interact with their counterparts and experts in their area of interest and with community volunteers who open their homes for informal interaction.

INTERPRETATION AND TRANSLATION

The Institute provides linguistically and culturally sensitive interpretation and translation services to the community in 50 distinct languages. These services are primarily provided to the medical, legal, and social service professions to assist them in providing services to their clients. The Institute also provides training for individuals who wish to pursue a profession in interpretation or just to hone their skills through a series of programs and evaluation procedures.