Programs

Workforce Development Program

NAAPR employment services is built on more than 40 years of combined staff and leadership experience in designing and delivering programs for refugee and immigrant communities. Our model integrates employment services with wraparound supports, recognizing that economic mobility requires addressing multiple barriers simultaneously. Services are individualized and integrated, ensuring participants build skills, secure employment, and receive ongoing support for retention and advancement and include:

  • Career Counseling and Coaching

  • Job Readiness Training

  • Career Pathway Development

  • Vocational ESL

  • Computer Assisted Job Readiness and Literacy

  • Workers’ Rights workshops

  • Job Skills Training

  • Job Search and retention assistance

Youth Leadership Development and After School program

Supports the leadership and cognitive and emotional development of refugee and immigrant youth through tutoring and homework assistance and mentoring and job shadowing to prepare youth for college and for the workforce.

Youth Leadership development to impact policy and practice and bring about meaningful change in their communities, particularly in reducing environmental toxins.

After -School Program provides English as a Second Language and Homework/tutoring help with the goal of providing educational opportunities to motivate and help students to gain skills and competency in reading, math, writing, and science to improve school performance.

College & Career Exploration Lab provides early, hands-on exploration and builds students’ motivation, confidence, and a clear roadmap for life after high school.

Homelessness Prevention

Homelessness prevention and emergency financial assistance – provides intensive case management, referrals and financial assistance (rental, utilities, car repairs) to refugees and immigrants who are homeless or unstably housed.

Policy Advocacy

Advocacy is central to our mission, as policy change and community-driven research are essential for creating nuanced and targeted services that address the needs of refugees and immigrants. We work across diverse refugee and immigrant communities to develop influential leaders in a cohort of refugee and immigrant policy advocates, uniting communities to influence the policies impacting their lives. NAAPR collaborates with our community members to build their advocacy, leadership, and civic engagement skills while supporting them in identifying and addressing economic, social, health, and educational disparities affecting them and their communities

Participatory Action Research

Research can play an essential role in the policy process. It adds to the existing knowledge about a particular problem, creates new information about emerging issues, and offers solutions to the identified problems.

NAAPR engages in local and national Participatory Action Research, needs assessments, focus groups, and survey assistance. By conducting new research and utilizing existing research on refugees and immigrants, we aim to support policy advocacy, educate the public, and foster dialogue about our communities’ personal experiences and perspectives.

    • Generate data on how refugees and immigrants perceive and are affected by various systems, focusing on their success, influence, and prosperity.

    • Partner with academic, public, and private entities to amplify the voices of refugees and immigrants through Participatory Action Research, promoting self-agency, empowerment, and community-driven policy solutions.

    • Disseminate research findings to the public and local, state, and national policymakers, in order to highlight needs and inform policy decisions and best practices.

Licensed Behavioral Health Program

Positive mental health outcomes of refugees resettled in the U.S. cannot be fully addressed without recognizing the traumas they endured as they fled their homelands, affecting their psychological and physical health. NAAPR provides integrated care to refugees and immigrants in King County. The program offers a comprehensive continuum of services, including trauma-informed care by professionals experienced in working with refugee and immigrant populations. NAAPR’s licensed Behavioral Health program aims to provide our families with a safe space and culture-affirming environment.

    • Culturally-responsive individual and family counseling

    • Community Connections Gatherings to heal from multiple stressors faced by refugees and immigrants after arriving in the U.S.

    • Active Minds, Healthy Brains training to normalize feelings experienced during resettlement.

    • Clinical case management to alleviate stressors by helping to remove barriers to accessing services.

    To complement our behavioral health program, we also provide information and referral about other programs and assistance in accessing state and federal benefits. NAAPR also provides training and consultation for service providers and other organizations that work with refugees and immigrants.

Refugee and immigrant families are disproportionately exposed to environmental toxins and suffer from poor social determinants of health. They are often housed in older, substandard buildings with hazards such as pests, inadequate ventilation, and lead paint, contributing to high rates of asthma and other health issues.

Community Health and Well-Being

    • Improving healthy environments among the immigrant/refugee community by reducingexposure to household toxins through community education and long-term policy change.

    • Organizing campaigns to ensure awareness about the long- and short-term health impacts of environmental toxins.

    • Cultivating community leadership and participation in health and environmental policy decisions.

    • Affecting and informing policy regarding toxins and environmental health.

    • Advocating for culturally relevant informational materials, toxic-free housing placements, and safe and healthy environments.