Two training sessions are scheduled next week for immigrants from African countries and Grand Forks community stakeholders to help integrate immigrants into the city.
The training sessions will be held Wednesday at the Alerus Center and will be led by Shola Ajiboye from African Community International in Indianapolis. The training and follow-up discussions will focus on how to assist with integrating immigrants into the community, the city's perception of its immigrants and expectations from all parties, according to a city press release.
Grand Forks' Immigrant Integration steering committee is working with the National League of Cities' Municipal Action for Immigrant Integration program.
"This is a great example of the opportunities Grand Forks has through our partnership with the National League of Cities," said Hal Gershman, president of the Grand Forks City Council and chair of the integration committee, said in a press release. "This training underscores our mission of encouraging citizenship and community engagement."
Supported by the Knight Foundation, the MAII program is a resource for city officials and community-based organizations to address immigrant challenges by promoting civic engagement and naturalization among immigrant communities, the press release said.
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The first session will be for African immigrants, from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Alerus Center. It will be a facilitated discussion on perceptions and expectations of the city, as well as opportunities and challenges for immigrants to become active and engaged in the community, officials said.
The second session is for community organization representatives and is scheduled for 1:30 to 3 p.m. Targeted stakeholders include health care providers, law enforcement, educators, social services providers and government officials.
The training sessions have been in the works for weeks, said Pete Haga with the mayor's office, and are unrelated to Thursday's incident in which several Somali men were detained in Grand Forks until their immigration status was confirmed. The men were released later Thursday evening after it was determined they were in the country legally.
Both sessions are free and open to the public. To register or for more information, contact Haga at phaga@grandforksgov.com or (701) 740-6696.
