For many resettled refugees, adjusting to American cultural norms can be
a difficult and unexpected process. Children are often the first in the
family to learn English and frequently assume the roles of mediators
between the American system and their families. Refugees who may have
been professionals in their home country fail to meet re-certification
standards here in the United States and are forced to take employment
outside their field, which causes very painful change in their social
status. Refugees may reunite with long-separated family members, or
even meet them for the first time in their lives. And this is on top of
the previous trauma of persecution, displacement and immigration.
Ultimately, each and every refugee family is in crisis just because of
the very fact of displacement and immigration, let alone serious
violations of their human rights in their countries of origin.

Without strengthening refugee families, the resettlement process is
incomplete. There are many programs that teach mainstream America how
to maintain healthy families, develop better communication skills, and resolve
conflicts. These programs have been proven to have successful outcomes
for mainstream American couples. However, no such programs have been
developed for ethnically diverse populations or refugees.

This is why HIAS developed a Refugee Family Enrichment Program that
tailors family strengthening education to refugee populations. This
program is being implemented through our affiliate Jewish Family
Services in Atlanta; San Diego; Chicago; Tucson; Bergen County, NJ;
Cincinnati; Rockville, MD; Pittsburgh; New York; Columbus, OH;
Springfield, MA; and Boston. The HIAS Refugee Family Enrichment Program
is part of the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Healthy
Marriage initiative. Our program was featured by ACF as a best practice
site.