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Refugee Resettlement Services

The primary objective of our Refugee Resettlement Program is to foster self-sufficiency through employment, empowering clients to support themselves while instilling a sense of responsibility and active participation in their new community. Our comprehensive services may include cash assistance, emergency rental aid, transportation, employment services, and orientation with referrals to community resources.

We promote a resettlement model centered around case management, offering essential services and tools to enhance clients' self-sufficiency and employability.

Reception and Placement (R&P)

Matching Grant (MG)

Preferred Communities Programs

Reception and Placement (R&P) is the starting point for all ECDC Houston Multicultural Center interaction with our refugee clients. The program assists clients for up to 90 days starting with airport pick-up and permanent housing assistance.

Under Reception and Placement, clients receive many initial services to acclimate to life in the US, including cultural orientations, assistance with school enrollment, food security, and assistance with applying for social services like SNAP, Medicaid and Social Security Income.

Reception and Placement (R&P)

Refugees & Asylees
Special Immigrant Visa holders
Certified victims of severe forms of trafficking

Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) Eligible Individuals:

Certain Amerasians
Humanitarian Parolees
Individuals designated as eligible by the director of ORR

Matching Grant (MG)

Funding source (Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) passthrough Ethiopian Community Development Council (ECDC).

The Matching Grant Program goal is to help eligible clients attain self-sufficiency within 240 days after date of eligibility for Matching Grant services, without accessing public assistance. Clients receive transitional cash assistance up to 120 days.

Employment is one of the most critical steps for refugees in order to achieve self-sufficiency. Matching Grant assists recently arrived refugees find employment through skills assessment and referrals, job placement, skills training and post-placement follow-up.

Preferred Communities Programs

The Preferred Communities program is designed to support refugees with extensive barriers to self-sufficiency
and who need intensive medical or well-being support.

This program primarily assists single mothers, youth without parents, seniors who lack family support, LGBT individuals, and those with mental health and medical needs.

GAP Services

Our Gaps Services Department is committed to providing essential, culturally responsive support to a broad and diverse population of newcomers across the Greater Houston area. Through targeted programs, we walk alongside individuals and families, especially those who have arrived independently through humanitarian parole or similar pathways, as they navigate their new lives in the United States. Many of these community members are supported by family, friends, or sponsors who helped them come to the U.S., and our Gaps Services Department extends expert guidance to both new arrivals and their sponsors.

Our dedicated team of Gaps Case Managers engages in proactive outreach to identify and connect with new arrivals and other under-served populations. We work to ensure they are aware of and can access benefits, resources, and opportunities crucial to their health, stability, and long-term success.

We believe that every individual has the right to thrive. By offering personalized support and partnering with public agencies and community-based organizations, HMC equips individuals and families to achieve self-sufficiency, share their strengths, and create vibrant futures as they build new lives in the United States.

This program offers tailored case management, mental health services, and access to specialized resources to help these individuals overcome challenges and build a stable, productive life in their new community.