On Thursday, June 24, Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Brian P. McKeon traveled to Atlanta and Clarkston, Georgia, along with Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration Senior Bureau Official Nancy Izzo Jackson, and met with resettlement agency staff including State Refugee Coordinator Michael Singleton and state and local officials including Mayor of Clarkston Beverly Burks and DeKalb County Commissioners Ted Terry and Lorraine Cochran-Johnson. The Deputy Secretary also met with refugee services partners including the Coalition of Refugee Service Agencies (CRSA), Georgia Welcoming Co-Op, Refugee Women Network, Global Village Project (GVP), Positive Growth, the Center for Victims of Torture, as well as other education, employment, and medical specialists.
Deputy Secretary McKeon discussed the integral role of resettlement agency staff in the welcoming process for new refugee arrivals, the resources necessary to re-build the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP), the integral role local communities play in ensuring the successful integration of refugees, and the valuable contributions refugees make to their new communities and economies.
Deputy Secretary McKeon also greeted newly arrived refugees, spoke with resettled refugees about their experiences arriving to their new communities, and underscored the United States' deep commitment to supporting refugees in the U.S. and around the world.
