On April 20, 2013, Safe Passage once again reached out to immigrant youth in the community, this time by holding a citizenship clinic at a high school in Washington Heights.  New York Law School alumni Desiree Hernandez ’08,    Mayra Cano ’11, Kelly Garner ‘11 interviewed students and their families and determined that many of them were eligible to apply for U.S. citizenship or other forms of immigration relief. We assisted them in preparing their N-400’s and will be working closely with them as they go through the naturalization process. NYLS students and ILSA members Ilana Snyder 3L, Vivian Carballo 3L, Luisa Lebron 2L, Vanessa Caicedo 2L, Kara Kelly 2L, Vanessa Caicedo 2L, Christine Magee 2L, provided invaluable assistance in organizing and participating in Citizenship day.  Safe Passage would like to extend a very special thank you to Desiree Hernandez ’08, who led the charge and was deemed Most Valuable Player by the High School students, social workers, and ILSA members.  Together, Safe Passage and ILSA, completed 13 citizenship interviews, and 3 comprehensive status screenings.

David Lenzner, a High School Spanish teacher summed up the day stating, “Safe Passage continues to change the lives of students and their families. Every school in New York City should be able to turn to such a smart, thorough and thoughtful organization for legal assistance and guidance.”