idealist.org

The Albany Field Office of the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI) seeks an Intern or dedicated volunteer to serve as Welcome Home Program Coordinator, who will facilitate donations from the community and help to ensure a smooth set up of apartments for newly arriving refugees.
Refugees come to Albany having fled war and persecution, and start with nothing. USCRI resettles 350 refugees each year, and has to find an apartment for each family and provide them with appropriate furniture and housewares. With limited funding, we rely on donations from the community to provide all refugees with the items they need in their new home.

The Welcome Home Program Coordinator will:

- Coordinate with members of the community who’d like to donate items
- Arrange for pick up or delivery of the donation to our warehouse
- Provide donors with receipts and track required data for our reporting needs
- Recruit and work with on-call volunteers to help with donation deliveries
- Help maintain the warehouse
- Organize Donation Drives through schools and community groups
- Work closely with case managers and other staff to arrange for set up of apartments
- Help ensure that new families have all the items they need to make a good start in Albany.

We are looking for someone who can volunteer 15-35 hours per week during the regular work week, and who can make a commitment of at least 3 months, and ideally 6 or more months.

This is a challenging but very rewarding unpaid position. You will have the opportunity to make a huge a huge difference in the lives of refugees, and to learn a great deal about the work of refugee resettlement.
This is an excellent opportunity for a recent college graduate or for someone looking to keep their resume current while they are in between jobs.

ABOUT USCRI ALBANY
The U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI) is a national voluntary agency that works with the federal government to resettle refugees from all over the world in welcoming communities throughout the United States. USCRI Albany opened its doors in 2005, and now serves hundreds of refugees each year, helping them connect with the resources and services they need to adapt to their new homes in the Capital Region. The largest populations served by the Albany Field Office are from Burma, Iraq, Bhutan, with smaller groups from Afghanistan, the Congo, and Sudan. The Albany field office also has an immigration and asylum services program that serves not only refugee clients and their families, but asylum seekers and immigrants from the wider community as well.
Our mission is to help refugees become self-sufficient, contributing members of our community who can again dream of a hopeful future for themselves and their children. We act to defend human rights, promote self-sufficiency and education, and forge community partnerships through a full range of services and programs.
Skills

REQUIREMENTS

* Must speak, read, and write English fluently.
* Must be proficient in Microsoft Word and Excel and other Windows applications.
* Must have excellent organizational, time-management, follow-up, interpersonal, and administrative skills.
* Must have excellent telephone manner, research and writing skills, attention to detail.
* Must be capable of working in a fast-paced, multicultural office environment, take initiative, and be able to handle multiple assignments at once and meet deadlines.
* Commitment to the human rights and general welfare of asylum seekers, refugees and immigrants.

DESIRED, BUT NOT REQUIRED

* Strong candidates will have previous internship experience in non-governmental or inter-governmental organizations.
* Strong candidates will have a truck, and the ability to pick up donated items from houses

Please send a cover letter and resume to

Jen Barkan, Resource Manager, info@uscri-albany.org 518-459-1790 x292
USCRI Albany, 991 Broadway, Suite 223, Albany, NY 12202
www.RefugeesAlbany.org