Staff Spotlight: Bikabe Milanga

 
 

By Jamie Brian

Bikabe Malanga, an employment case manager at the International Institute of Akron, is no stranger to the challenges that immigrants and refugees face. He was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Kivu region, but due to war and political instability, he was forced to leave his home when he was ten months old. Bikabe and his family then spent twenty years living in a refugee camp in Tanzania before resettling in Akron. 

This experience has shaped how he views his job and the populations IIA serves. 

“My favorite part of my job is feeling all of my own memories from when I just came here as a refugee,” Bikabe said. “Essentially, what they (my case managers) did for me, I’m doing now. I went through that, and now I’m trying to do the same thing for my clients.” 

Bikabe arrived in Akron in 2016 through the International Institute of Akron. He worked as an interpreter and translator before becoming a case manager. He says that working for a nonprofit organization that supports refugees and immigrants is his dream job because he wants to help other refugees resettle in northeast Ohio. 

As an employment case manager, Bikabe guides newcomers to the United States through the process of landing a job. He coordinates with employers in Akron, Medina, and other neighboring cities to schedule interviews, provide training, and arrange transportation to and from work. 

“When I place a client into a job, I feel very happy about it because they are becoming more self-sufficient,” he said. 

As a refugee, Bikabe understands the challenges that refugees and immigrants face when arriving in the United States. Many clients don’t speak English, so language and culture can be barriers to employment. 

“I still have a bit of an accent because English is my second language,” he said. “My first language is Kibembe and Swahili and also French.” 

To overcome these barriers, Bikabe arranges interpreting services and education for clients to help them succeed in the workplace. 

Outside of his work with the International Institute of Akron, Bikabe is a leader in the Congolese community. On Saturdays, he helps his Congolese neighbors read letters written in English.  

“I have always wanted to give back to other refugees,” he said. 

October at the International Institute of Akron!

A lot has been happening at IIA, from expanding our staff to planning our office move, and we’re excited to share all the updates from October with you below!

IIA is Expanding: Welcome Aaron and Melanie!
We have two new IIA team members to welcome this month, Aaron Shaum and Melanie Rodriquez!

Aaron has joined the IIA legal team as a Staff Attorney. He recently graduated from law school at Ohio State’s Moritz College of Law, focusing on housing and economic rights law. While studying for the Bar Exam, Aaron worked for a legal aid organization in Columbus, where he began working on Afghan asylum applications. This piqued his interest in immigration law, which led Aaron to apply for a Staff Attorney position at the International Institute of Akron.

Before going to law school, Aaron had a sales job, and while he enjoyed this work, he wanted to go home at the end of the day and feel like he made an impact on someone’s life. Because of this, helping others is what Aaron looks forward to most at IIA, and we could not be more thrilled to have him join the family!

Melanie joined the team this month as IIA’s Intake-Specialist and Operations Assistant. As an Intake-Specialist, Melanie will meet with prospective clients for legal services, assess their needs, and set them up with IIA’s legal team while referring them to other IIA programs such as education services or social services. As Operations Assistant, Melanie’s main task is preparing for IIA’s office move in January. She is completing behind-the-scenes work, like working on floor plans and communicating with vendors about the move.

Before coming to IIA, Melanie worked as an Office Assistant in the Admissions Office at Malone University. She looks forward to continuing to work in administrative work while taking on more client-facing work as the Intake-Specialist.

We’re thrilled to welcome both Aaron and Melanie to the IIA team, and we know they’ll do outstanding work for the refugee and immigrant communities!

Aaron Shaum (Right) and Melanie Rodriquez (Left)

2023 Presidential Determination
At the start of each federal fiscal year, the sitting president must set what is called the Presidential Determination (PD). The PD sets the refugee admissions ceiling for the year, meaning that within that given fiscal year, the PD is the number of refugees that may be admitted to the United States. The number of refugees admitted does not have to reach this given number, but it cannot exceed the number.

On Tuesday, September 27, President Biden announced the 2023 Presidential Determination at 125,000 people. The admissions numbers will be allocated among refugees of special humanitarian concern to the United States in accordance with the following regional allocations:

Africa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40,000
East Asia . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15,000
Europe and Central Asia . . . . . . 15,000
Latin America/Caribbean . . . . . . 15,000
Near East/South Asia . . . . . . . . 35,000
Unallocated Reserve . . . . . . . . . 5,000

This year's Presidential Determination gives hope that the U.S. is continuously rebuilding and growing the Refugee Admissions Program to its former glory. IIA looks forward to continuing to welcome new refugees and immigrants to Akron and offering a safe place to those who have been forced to flee their homes.

Volunteer Spotlight: Brigette Eschenauer
For International Institute of Akron volunteer Brigitte Eschenauer, there is no such thing as a language barrier. She built her career working as a French and English interpreter and translator. She then spent 18 years teaching French to high school students at Laurel School in Shaker Heights and Western Reserve Academy in Hudson. After retiring from teaching, she began volunteering with Catholic Charities in Cleveland as an interpreter for Congolese immigrants. In 2016, she read an article in The Plain Dealer about the International Institute of Akron’s work with refugees. She decided to call the front desk and ask for more information about volunteering. Her first role as a volunteer was as a receptionist at the old IIA location on Tallmadge Avenue.

Learn more about Brigette’s incredible story and her work as an IIA volunteer on our blog, Volunteer Spotlight: Brigette Eschenauer.

IIA volunteer Brigette Eschenauer at IN-Akron's World Refugee Day event!

IIA in the News:
International Institute of Akron to swap office in “International Neighborhood” for downtown in 2023
Jennifer Conn from Spectrum News 1 recently wrote a story highlighting IIA’s big news; we’re moving downtown! Read her story here.

In January 2023, IIA will move our main office from our current location in North Hill to downtown Akron. Our new address will be 530 S. Main St., Ste. 1762, Akron, OH 44311.

While our education department will continue to be housed in North Hill at The International House of San Tomasso, our new downtown location will be central to our clients who reside across Akron.

An Office Relocation Packet, with parking, bus, and contact information in English, is available here. Packets in Pashto, Dari, Swahili, Burmese, and Nepalese will be added soon.

IIA’s future home in downtown Akron!

Get involved at IIA!

Looking for ways to get involved with IIA or the refugee and immigrant community? Check out a few suggestions below!

Donate! Stay up-to-date on IIA donation needs on our website at www.iiakron.org/donation-room. We also post updates on our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Volunteer! Since IIA is a small non-profit, we often get more interest in volunteering than we have opportunities for. However, if you choose to apply online, we will keep your application and let you know if a future opportunity arises! Send in your application at www.iiakron.org/volunteer.

Keep Learning! Learning about refugees and their experiences is a great way to stay involved. You can read a new book, watch a documentary, or follow IIA on social media for more suggestions on educational materials!

Thanks for staying up to date on everything IIA, and we look forward to sharing more information soon!

Volunteer Spotlight: Brigette Eschenauer

 

Brigette Eschenauer at World Refugee Day!

 

For International Institute of Akron volunteer Brigitte Eschenauer, there is no such thing as a language barrier. She built her career working as a French and English interpreter and translator. She then spent 18 years teaching French to high school students at Laurel School in Shaker Heights and Western Reserve Academy in Hudson. After retiring from teaching, she began volunteering with Catholic Charities in Cleveland as an interpreter for Congolese immigrants. Brigitte immigrated to the United States from Germany in 1972, so she can relate to the challenges that immigrants and refugees face.

“I remember that it was not easy, even though I had all the advantages of having an American husband and not having to find a job right away,” she said. “Still, it was a little bit of a shock. I could just imagine how hard it must be for those people who come here.”

This feeling of empathy toward immigrants and refugees grew over the years, and Brigitte longed to become more involved with the refugee community. In 2016, she read an article in The Plain Dealer about the International Institute of Akron’s work with refugees. She decided to call the front desk and ask for more information about volunteering. Her first gig as a volunteer was as a receptionist at the old IIA location on Tallmadge Avenue.

“One day a week, I would be at the reception for the refugees helping them figure out who they needed to talk to. It was a very small space, but it was nice because we just talked a lot while we were waiting,” Brigitte said. “It was a very congenial atmosphere.”

Brigitte has been an asset to the International Institute of Akron since her first day at the reception desk in 2016. She now works in the donation room, where she collects and sorts the household items that families need when they arrive in America.

“The caseworkers tell us ‘OK, there is a family of eight coming next week,’ so we prepare everything for that family,” Brigitte said, “you know, sheets and comforters and pillows and kitchen utensils. When they get into their house, they have pretty much what they need right away.”

Brigitte said that the most challenging aspect about volunteering in the donation room is the planning. Sometimes refugees’ planes don’t land on time, and sometimes multiple families arrive at once.

“I like to plan, but this is not a job where you can plan. You hope that you don’t offer too much but enough in case you have two families of ten who come in the same week. You don’t want to run out of pillows and toilet paper.”

Despite the occasional inventory challenge, Brigitte says that she wouldn’t change anything about her volunteer position. She finds purpose in her work, and she also enjoys speaking French with some of the other volunteers in the donation room.

By donating her time for the International Institute of Akron, she hopes that she can inspire other people to support refugees.

“It’s getting harder and harder for people to understand what it means to be a refugee and come to a totally new country,” Brigitte said. “It has to be so hard, and I don’t think that many people realize how difficult it is.”

The International Institute of Akron’s goal is to guide refugees through the immigration process, so that they can feel safe and welcomed in this new chapter of their lives.