![[photo, 301 West Preston St., Baltimore, Maryland]](/msa/mdmanual/15dgs/images/1198-1-690.jpg)
Co-Chair: Alexander M. Sanchez, Secretary of Labor, Licensing, & Regulation
301 West Preston St., Baltimore, Maryland, March 2004. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Appointed by Senate President: Joan Carter Conway; Richard S. Madaleno, Jr.
Appointed by House Speaker: Nicholaus R. Kipke; Susan C. Lee.
Ex officio: Christian S. Johansson, Secretary of Business & Economic Development; Raymond A. Skinner, Secretary of Housing & Community Development; Brenda Donald, Secretary of Human Resources; Richard E. Hall, Secretary of Planning; Luwanda Walker Jenkins, Special Secretary of Minority Affairs; Israel C. (Izzy) Patoka, Executive Director, Governor's Office of Community Initiatives; Eric M. Seleznow, Executive Director, Governor's Workforce Investment Board; Mary Brown Scott, Chair, Commission on African-American History & Culture; Jane T. Nishida, Chair, Governor's Commission on Asian-Pacific American Affairs; Yolanda Maria Welch, Chair, Governor's Commission on Hispanic Affairs; Auriel A. Fenwick, Chair, Commission on Indian Affairs; Anwer Hasan, Chair, Governor's Commission on Middle-Eastern American Affairs.
Staff: Iman Awad
c/o Governor's Office of Community Initiatives
301 West Preston St., Suite 1500, Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 767-7925
e-mail: iman.awad@maryland.gov
Functions of the Maryland Council for New Americans originated with the Maryland Refugee Advisory Council formed within the Department of Human Resources in 1980. The Council reformed within the Department in 1994 as the Maryland Advisory Council for New Americans (Executive Order 01.01.1994.26). In December 2008, the Governor established the Maryland Council for New Americans as a unit separate from the Department (Executive Order 01.01.2008.18).
To promote the full integration of immigrants into the economic and civic life of Maryland, the Council reviewed and made recommendations concerning current practices and policies to expedite integration of immigrants into Maryland society.
The Council was a partnership between public, private and civic sectors. Besides its membership, the Council had an executive committee and four working groups.
In 2010, the Council last met.
FINANCIAL SERVICES WORKING GROUP
The Financial Services Working Group sought strategies to improve immigrant access to mainstream financial services, family financial planning, and stable homeownership opportunities.
GOVERNMENTAL ACCESS WORKING GROUP
The Governmental Access Working Group worked to improve the accessibility to governmental services for immigrants. Further, the Group developed StateStat measures for tracking service to immigrants.
WORKFORCE WORKING GROUP
To address the State's workforce shortage, the Workforce Working Group examined the transfer of credentials, and the training and attracting of key workers; and sought the best way to teach immigrants to speak English, both at work and in the public schools. The Working Group also examined how Maryland One-Stop Career Centers help immigrants find employment and whether that process can be streamlined.
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