Ms. Vyvian Toy Drive for Ukrainian Refugee Children
On June 16, 2023, a special Toy Distribution followed by a Pizza Luncheon was offered to 35 Ukrainian refugee children at the ISC. This special event was made possible by a 9 years-old Vietnamese-American 4th Grader, Ms. Vyvian Bui. This young lady, whose parents were among the first Vietnamese “Boat People” refugees to set foot on American soil after miraculously surviving their perilous sea journey in the late 1970’s to escape Communist persecution. Deeply touched by the similar tragedy most Ukrainian children had to go through in their war-torn homeland, she decided to conduct a Toy Drive at her Westtown […]
Read moreMental Health Training
Date: Wednesday, February 8th, 2023 Duration: Approx. 4 hours Location: International Service Center (Market Square Church) – Fellowship Hall 21 South River StreetHarrisburg, PA 17101 Speaker: Rev. Susan Moore (Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute) In this modern, post-pandemic age, mental health is a popular topic discussed in various settings, such as schools, workplaces, and the community. However, the matter is still observably taboo for immigrants from different cultures that ISC works with. For the last two years, we have been resettling Humanitarian paroles from Afghanistan. Last year, we also started assisting Ukrainian paroles. Survivors of wars are known to be at higher risk […]
Read moreAfghan Placement Assistance (APA) Project
August 2021 has been a very intense and hectic month for the International Service Center (ISC) as the heartbreaking events in Afghanistan and consequences of the U.S. troop withdrawal have unfolded. The security risk for Afghan Allies who assisted the U.S. mission in Afghanistan and their loved ones, became a heightened priority, made even more urgent by the Taliban takeover of the country on August 15. Within two weeks, the U.S. government had managed to safely evacuate more than 120,000 U.S. Citizens and Afghan nationals out of Kabul Airport to various U.S. military bases around the world. The vast majority […]
Read moreMy Internship Experience at the ISC
During my MSW internship time of 344 hours at ISC, I enhanced my knowledge and expanded my experience and expertise in immigration law and concepts. In addition, I learned the different services that the ISC offers, such as immigration guidance, translation, and interpretation services, among social services programs for disadvantaged, unprivileged, and needy people. The Immigration Guidance training was also a huge focus as part of my internship, and attending the webinars, e-course, and virtual training were the highlights of my time at ISC. The peer-coaching program is an excellent idea because it allows interns to learn faster and know […]
Read moreMy Internship at the ISC
Marie Lagos, Human Development & Family Science (Messiah University) The International Service Center (ISC) is a non-profit organization that offers immigration guidance, translation and interpretation services, among other things. People from all over the world, who live in the state of Pennsylvania, came on a daily basis to apply for some changes of their immigration status or to apply for their family members overseas to be reunited with them in the country, just to name a few. My internship was crucial in helping developing administrative and immigration guidance skills. On one hand, I was introduced to the weekly IG Appointment Schedule (IGAS). […]
Read moreMy Internship Experience at the ISC
Esther Stelina Nganinga Moubandzou, International Studies (Shippensburg Univ.) My time at the International Service Center (ISC) was my first hand experience in the working world. Unfortunately, I leave with regrets knowing that I did not learn about immigration in more depths. Attending the seminars and the virtual conferences were the highlights of my time at the ISC. I think that the peer-coaching program is a great idea because it allows interns to learn faster and to know who to talk to if they faced any challenge. Overall, I have learned several skills which are mainly administrative and how to fill […]
Read moreInternship Report: Mireille Uwase Cyuzuzo
IntroductionI have been granted an opportunity to do my internship at International Service Center (ISC), from March 01, 2021, to March 18, 2021. I had to complete my tasks within the period of my internship, which was 90 hours. I had a schedule of 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM from Monday through Friday. However, my schedule turned out to be flexible due to the capacity in the building and school responsibilities. On Monday 8th, Tuesday 9th, Monday 15th, and Tuesday 16th, I had towork from home because of the capacity limit in the building. On Friday the 5th, I came […]
Read moreMy Internship Experience at the ISC
By: Abolfazl F., M.S Candidate in Leadership and Organizational Development During the period of the 120 hours internship in the International Service Center (ISC), I was trying to familiarize myself with the different aspects, levels, and activities of the noted organization. In this short period, I had been assessing the management of the daily operation of the Community Development programs. I am being provided a comprehensive description of the ISC technology assessment in a separate paper that I tried to illuminate some useful recommendations on some simple and practical appropriate application of technologies to improve the ISC technology management. Additionally, […]
Read moreThe U.S evolving role in global refugee policies and resettlement
Over 30 partners in mission spent a splendid Friday morning at the ISC on May 31st listening to Dr. Juliette Tolay’s talk about “The U.S evolving role in global refugee policies and resettlement”. An assistant professor of Political Science at the School of Public Affairs at Harrisburg Penn State University, Dr. Tolay is also a well-known researcher on asylum, migration and foreign policies, as well as public attitudes in Europe, Turkey, and the Middle East. In front of a captive audience, consisting mostly of refugee education, health, social, and community service providers, the speaker discussed about the Trump administration’s turn […]
Read moreGoodbye, Minou Nguyen
On Wednesday, December 12, 2018, we bid goodbye to Minou Nguyen who had to return to College in Texas after serving as ISC’s Acting Language Bank Coordinator for the past three months. Besides her conscientious and excellent performance in coordinating the daily operation of the Language Bank, Minou has been instrumental in the successful completion of many other special projects, including: Coaching new interns, Developing materials for ISC’s overseas mission, Assisting in community orientation and training events, Re-organizing and decorating ISC’s workplace, etc. Minou’s readiness to accept any new challenging tasks or doing extra work whenever needed, have been deeply […]
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