Lancaster-Lebanon Intermediate Unit 13's Community Education program, in partnership with Church World Service and the Literacy Council of Lancaster-Lebanon, recently received a $1.05 million federal grant to develop an Employer Engagement Program (EEP) aimed at helping refugees resettle.

The grant from the Office of Refugee Resettlement Grant (ORR), part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families, will provide the partnership $350,000 of federal funds per year for three consecutive years. It was one of 31 grants awarded nationwide in 2023. ORR provides new populations with the opportunity to maximize their potential and critical resources to assist them in becoming integrated members of American society.

Refugees and immigrants play an increasingly larger role in the region's workforce, and they served on the frontlines during COVID-19 in industries such as health care, food service, and child care.

EEP partners will work with employers in Lancaster, Lebanon, and Dauphin counties to create pipelines to jobs and career pathways for the successful hiring and retaining of refugees in their workplaces. The grant will engage employers in maximizing the skills and talents new neighbors bring to the workforce, create opportunities for staff members to improve their English skills, offer employer-supported training and leadership development, and create more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplaces.

Church World Service South Central PA plans to help 600 refugees resettle locally this year. The EEP and its employer partners will help these future workers make the United States their permanent home, given that, as refugees, they are not able to return to their native countries.

Lancaster-Lebanon IU13 Community Education provides adult basic education and family literacy services, cultural navigation, and career advising in Lancaster and Lebanon counties. To learn more about this program, contact IU13 at 717-606-1718 or visit http://www.iu13.org/community/community-education/workforce-education and click on Employer Engagement Program.