 State Letter #02-32
TO: STATE REFUGEE COORDINATORS
NATIONAL VOLUNTARY AGENCIES
OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES
FROM: Nguyen Van Hanh, Ph.D.
Director
Office of Refugee Resettlement
SUBJECT: ORR's Reorganization
Last summer we published in the Federal Register a new internal structure and functional statement for the Office of Refugee Resettlement. (A copy is attached.) Since then, we have reorganized the office and realigned grants and contracts among the three newly formed divisions to distribute our work efficiently. You may be pleased to learn that we have consolidated grant-related activities where possible to provide you with a single point of contact in ORR. Although this was not always possible for some of the more technical discretionary initiatives, we hope that our restructuring will result in better and more streamlined service to you. The reorganization of our office is summarized below:
The Division of Self-Sufficiency has been renamed the Division of Refugee Assistance (DRA) and is led by Nguyen Kimchi. This division will manage grants to States and governmental agencies for cash and medical assistance and formula social services and targeted assistance, in addition to the Unaccompanied Refugee Minors Program. I have also assigned to this division the following: medical screening for newly arriving refugees, targeted assistance discretionary grants, Cuban/Haitian programs, services to older refugees, and school impact grants. Additionally, this division will be responsible for Wilson/Fish alternative grants and for State public-private partnerships. The division State analysts will negotiate the annual performance goals under the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA). Questions related to States and Fish/Wilson grants are to be addressed to DRA. I have attached a list of DRA staff assignments.
The Division of Community Resettlement (DCR), led by two co-directors, Henley Portner and Marta Brenden, will handle most discretionary grants awarded to non-profit and community-based organizations, as well as grants to voluntary agencies for the Matching Grant Program. This division is responsible for economic development, technical assistance initiatives, and for programs that influence the placement of newly arriving refugees in local communities. DCR will continue its role in the U.S. Repatriate Program for returning U.S. citizens and their dependents during times of crisis or civil unrest.
A newly created Division of Budget, Policy and Data Analysis (BPDA), led by Gayle Smith, will handle the following activities: the allocation and tracking of funds for refugee cash and medical assistance and State administrative costs; ORR's annual budget forecasting; and the development and interpretation of ORR regulations, and legislative proposals. This division will also be responsible for the preparation of the Annual Report to Congress and for the ORR Refugee Data System for new arrivals.
The Immediate Office of the Director, which includes the deputy director, Carmel Clay-Thompson, my special assistant, Judith May, and our administrative officer, Margaret Bryant-Bashioum, provides overall direction to the office and direct guidance to the staff unit handling certification of victims of a severe form of trafficking.
I would like to thank you for your patience over the last few months as we have undertaken the various stages of this reorganization. And I look forward to working closely with you in the months and years ahead to make the refugee program the best possible model of good resettlement.