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Staff, interns, and volunteers, celebrate International Women’s Day at the ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ in Silver Spring.

On March 8th staff, volunteers, clients and partners gathered at the ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ office in Silver Spring to celebrate International Women’s Day. Both internationally and in US field offices, the ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ is striving to narrow the gender gap through its programming offered to women.

In the Silver Spring office, a new initiative piloted in 2016 is making significant strides to ensure there is equity among employment outcomes and opportunities for women clients served at the office. The initiative, called the Youth and Women’s Employability Program (informally referred to as Y-WEP), works with cohorts of women to provide job readiness training and address barriers to employment, such as childcare. The cohorts foster a supportive environment for women as they seek to gain skills, adjust to life in the US, and ultimately, find gainful employment. In the US, female refugees tend to have fewer years of education, less work experience, and less English proficiency than their male counterparts, presenting them with more obstacles throughout the resettlement process. Breaking down these barriers is essential to ensure that the women refugees and asylees served by the ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ in Silver Spring have equal access to services at the office, and are given the tools for successful futures in the US.