Refugees In St. Louis; Ariel Burgess, International Institute
As the only resettlement agency in St. Louis, the International Institute of St. Louis welcomes and provides services to refugees coming to St. Louis. Working with the St. Louis community and other service providers, these new St. Louisans are given the building blocks for a productive and rewarding life in their new home. The presentation will focus on how refugees come to the U.S and St. Louis, refugee populations in St. Louis and services provided.
Since 2000 P. Ariel Burgess has been the resettlement director for the International Institute. In this capacity she and her team have resettled 1000 + refugees from throughout the world. Ms. Burgess is a licensed social worker, having received her MSW in 1991. Prior to working at the Institute Ms. Burgess co-founded an HIV/AIDS clinic specifically for women and children; and worked with the mentally ill.