On behalf of the Foreign-born Information and Referral Network (FIRN), Community Science conducted a demographic study of immigrant groups in Howard County, Maryland. The different phases of the project included a socio-economic review to determine the growth of the immigrant population in the county, assessment of the assets and needs of the various immigrant groups in the county, and presentations about our findings to various audiences. (Read the Report or read about the study as covered in the newspaper The Business Monthly.) The results of our study helped inform the county’s five-year community strategic plan. (2004-2005)
In 2007, FIRN began a dialogue with Community Science about a second phase for the study, which involved a summit about how to strengthen the cultural competency of service providers in Howard County. Community Science worked closely with FIRN and an advisory committee to plan this summit, which occurred on October 6, 2008 at the James N. Robey Public Safety Training Center in Mariottsville. Community Science produced a summary of the three major activities during the summit: 1) sharing among the participants about their agencies and services, 2) three small group discussions on specific topics (information generated by two of the three groups were combined because the participants had similar discussions), and 3) next steps following the summit. (2008)