1. The Role of Local Government in Multicultural Policy – An International Perspective FATIMA SHAMA Friday, September 12, 2014

2. STRATEGIES FOR CREATING IMMIGRANT-FRIENDLY CITIES & COMMUNITIES • AGENDA: • SELF-ASSESSMENT • ROLE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS • STRATEGIES & SOLUTIONS • QUESTIONS INTRODUCTION| 3

3. IMMIGRANT-FRIENDLINESS: MEASURING WELCOMING, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

4. SELF-ASSESSMENT: MEASURING WELCOMING, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION • OBJECTIVES: • Self-assessment on measurements of welcoming, diversity, inclusion and integration on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being closest to ideal • This exercise will help identify strengths, weaknesses and challenges in approach to welcoming and serving diverse communities • MEASUREMENTS: • DIVERSITY • CIVIC ENGAGEMENT • WARMTH OF WELCOME • ACCESS TO PUBLIC BENEFITS & SERVICES • PUBLIC SAFETY • EMPLOYMENT AND INCOME • EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT ASSESSMENT | 5

5. ROLE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENTS

6. DEMOGRAPHIC SHIFTS BACKGROUND| 14

7. DEMOGRAPHIC SHIFTS TOP COUNTRIES OF ORIGIN NEW YORK CITY 1970 & 2010 BACKGROUND| 16

8. NYC MAYOR’S OFFICE OF IMMIGRANT AFFAIRS • MISSION STATEMENT: • Building on its Charter mandate, the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs promotes the well-being of immigrant communities by recommending policies and programs that facilitate the successful integration of immigrant New Yorkers into the civic, economic and cultural life of the City. INTRODUCTION | 2

9. STRATEGIES & SOLUTIONS CITIZENSHIP | 2

10. CREATING A MUNICIPAL AGENDA COMPONENTS: • ENSURE AND ENHANCE ACCESS: Promote use of city services and access to information and resources for immigrants • Confidentiality • Language Access • BUILD PARTNERSHIPS: Liaise with and promote collaboration between city agencies and offices and immigrant communities • Listening Tour • Civic Engagement • PROVIDE TECH. ASSISTANCE: Serve as a key resource to other agencies and offices regarding immigrants • Serving Vulnerable Youth (ACS) • Universal Pre-K (DOE) • CELEBRATE CONTRIBUTIONS: Coordinate programs celebrating immigrant contributions and supporting immigrant heritage • Immigrant Heritage Week • StoryCorps AGENDA| 21

11. LANGUAGE ACCESS • OBJECTIVES: • Build a more customer service-oriented approach to the delivery of government services • Promote meaningful access to services for limited English proficient residents through effective communication that includes multilingual signage, interpretation services, translation of essential documents, plain language principles, and multilingual outreach campaigns • Increase government efficiency through standardizing language access across agencies • Further the public safety, health, economic prosperity, and general welfare of all City residents by increasing their access to City programs and services LANGUAGE ACCESS| 23

12. CITIZENSHIP • OBJECTIVES: • Help greater numbers of immigrant parents apply to become U.S. citizens • Increase visibility and accessibility of affordable, high-quality immigration legal assistance • Connect immigrants with neighborhood-based financial institutions to help them establish credit, open bank accounts and learn about other mainstream financial services that are available • Increase immigrant parent involvement in education by providing immigration-related services for parents in schools CITIZENSHIP | 28

13. CIVIC ENGAGEMENT • OBJECTIVES: • Connect immigrant communities to information and resources about City services and additional resources for community development • Identify and cultivate immigrant leaders who will act as ambassadors and liaisons between municipal government and immigrant communities • Forge meaningful and trusting partnerships between immigrant leaders and government representatives • Build bridges of communication, understanding, and respect among diverse communities and all city residents CIVIC ENGAGEMENT| 32

14. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT • OBJECTIVES: • Make it easier for immigrant owned small businesses to start and grow by connecting them with business courses courses and other resources • Increase the earnings potential of unemployed or underemployed immigrants with advanced degrees and in-demand skills • Leverage human capital assets to meet the growing demand for skilled labor in the STEM, finance and healthcare sectors ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT| 40

15. POLICE & COMMUNITY RELATIONS • OBJECTIVES: • Promote public safety by building and strengthening relationships with community leaders and organizations in immigrant communities • Coordinate with other bureaus, City agencies, organizations and various departmental units to address specific community concerns • Provide linguistically and culturally competent information on police department services and programs POLICE & COMMUNITY| 44

16. EDUCATION • OBJECTIVES: • Ensure that immigrant parents have meaningful access to their child’s school • Provide opportunities for immigrant parents to access and influence decision-making structures in the school system • Create material resources for schools to use with English Language Learner (ELL) students • Use data to target solutions toward high academic achievement for all ELLs EDUCATION | 49

17. FINANCIAL EMPOWERMENT • OBJECTIVES: • Promote financial empowerment and inclusion for immigrant households • Increase immigrants’ access to high-quality, low-cost financial education and counseling • Promote tax preparation and improve access to income-boosting tax credits • Connect low-income immigrant households to safe and affordable banking and asset-building products and services FINANCIAL EMPOWERMENT | 54

18. PUBLIC LIBRARIES • OBJECTIVES: • Curate collections of books and other materials and provide cultural programming to reflect the ethnic diversity of the local population • Provide relevant educational and skill-building workshops, programs and other services that make it easier for immigrants to survive and thrive • Develop partnerships with public, private and non-profit institutions around shared objectives such as English language instruction, public safety, citizenship and other topics LIBRARIES | 58

19. CONCLUSION & QUESTIONS CITIZENSHIP | 2

20. THANK YOU! CONTACTS: Fatima Shama fatima@fatimashama.com nyc.gov/integration CONCLUSION | 63