![\"Iverson](\"http:\/\/www.augsburg.edu\/now\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2018\/05\/Katia-story2.png\")
<\/a>The 90-day challenge<\/h2>\n
Refugees resettling in the United States come through a state agency or one of nine voluntary agencies that have cooperative agreements with the State Department to provide reception and placement services. Minnesota Council of Churches\u2019 Refugee Services has welcomed immigrants to Minnesota since 1985, and Iverson has done so on its behalf since 2013.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe clock is ticking from the time refugees walk off the plane. We have 90 days to help them start their lives in Minnesota,\u201d said Iverson, who has welcomed hundreds of refugees to America\u2019s shores. \u201cThe federal government provides slightly more than $900 per person to get each family started, but we rely on the support of faith communities, nonprofits, and individual volunteers to help these newcomers gain self-sufficiency.\u201d<\/p>\n
Iverson is glad to work in one of the more welcoming U.S. states, with Minnesota having resettled more than 90,000 refugees since 1970. But increasingly critical rhetoric around refugees has made life on the front lines tough as the 28-year-old struggles with landlords hesitant to rent to \u201cthose people\u201d and discrimination at new arrivals\u2019 workplaces or schools.<\/p>\n
Increasing day-to-day challenges thicken amid confounding regulations and tightening policies. For the 2018 fiscal year, for instance, the federal government has capped refugee admissions nationwide at 45,000\u2014the lowest in decades\u2014and arrivals aren\u2019t even on pace to reach half that number, according to the United Nations.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is fear and uncertainty, but for me, the toughest part of the job remains the short window of time I have with families,\u201d Iverson said of her three-month timeline. \u201cTo make real progress, clients need to be open, but they have been telling their life story\u2014almost on autopilot\u2014for years, and trust doesn\u2019t come easily for many of them, especially with strangers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Building trust among the doubtful<\/h2>\n
Ahmednor Farah has seen Iverson knock down walls of resistance. For four years, the native Somali worked alongside Iverson as a resettlement case manager and interpreter. Katia can flip a switch, he said, from boundless compassion\u2014crying alongside a despairing client\u2014to sober sincerity when she has to administer doses of reality. Clear boundaries within an expanse of empathy is the job.<\/p>\n
\u201cKatia\u2019s role is challenging, and only a person with her integrity can deliver the way she delivers,\u201d said Farah, who now works as a human services representative for Hennepin County, where he said low-income families, including refugee arrivals, apply for food and cash benefits. \u201cKatia managed to learn Somali, as the majority of her clients were Somalis, and she pushes back at the systems working against these families to make sure they receive equitable and just support.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her family has witnessed Iverson\u2019s devotion. Younger brother, Luke<\/strong> Minnesota has the highest number of refugees per capita nationwide, according to the U.S. Census and refugee-support agencies. With 2 percent of the nation\u2019s population, Minnesota has 13 percent of its refugees.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cSometimes Katia would leave the house at 11 p.m. to head to the airport, but she\u2019d always be at work by 8:30 a.m. the next day, following up with those clients or others,\u201d said Luke, a financial advisor with Ameriprise Financial in downtown Minneapolis. \u201cHer life is unconventional, but it is the times of deep connection and joy that I believe feed her the most and remind her why she is doing this work in the midst of a climate that fights against her and these families.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s all worth it, Katia said. \u201cThere is challenge and sadness in my job, but the positive far outweighs any negative. The resilience of these families is incredible. They are so present and bring with them long-held traditions\u2014how to heal when we don\u2019t have a doctor nearby or how to provide emotional healing to one another\u2014 that adds a richness to our world. They invite me into a deep foundation of wisdom, and that is a gift.\u201d<\/p>\n Katia was meant for this work. From a young age, her parents drove their four children from the predominantly white suburbs of Minneapolis to engage in missions in the Phillips neighborhood and other low-income areas.<\/p>\n This focus on service inspired Iverson to enroll at Augsburg University, nestled among some of the state\u2019s most prominent refugee settlements. She was an international relations major until her introductory class focused on \u201cthe way nations and leaders interacted rather than the humans living in those nations,\u201d Katia said.<\/p>\n Mid-year, the then-\u001ffirst-year student headed to the Nobel Peace Prize Forum, during which world leaders and peacemakers interact with students and community members. Waiting for a keynote to begin, Katia struck up a conversation about career options with fellow Auggies sitting near her.<\/p>\n A voice popped into the conversation: \u201cI\u2019m Professor Frankie Shackleford, and I\u2019m developing a new major: cross-cultural studies. You should consider it.\u201d<\/p>\n Katia spoke with the professor of Norwegian\u2014and continued to talk for four years\u2014about the in\u001efluence language has on our world and the insight people gain when they imagine life through others\u2019 perspectives.<\/p>\n \u201cI continue to rely on the lessons I learned at Augsburg as I consider the impact of my work and what I bring to each home,\u201d said Katia, who went on to participate in the Forum\u2019s Peace Scholars program and graduate magna cum laude. \u201cI am constantly analyzing the energy I bring, the questions I ask, and the way I ask them. I strive to be respectful and curious, to dress appropriately for each culture, and to make clients laugh.<\/p>\n
\n Iverson \u201915<\/strong>, roomed with Katia for several years. He comforted her when she would worry about \u201cfamilies not making it\u201d and understood when Katia had to cancel plans in order to meet a new arrival or help negotiate with a landlord.<\/p>\nA heart for service, a passion for others<\/h2>\n