My name is Yaron Schwartz and I’m the Director for the United States at the Tent Partnership for Refugees, which mobilizes the global business community to help refugees become job-ready or provide them with work. Founded by Chobani’s founder and CEO Hamdi Ulukaya in 2016, we are a network of over 300 major companies committed to helping hundreds of thousands of refugees access local labor markets. You can read more about our work at www.tent.org. I oversee a team that manages the Tent Coalition for Refugees in the United States, a network of 200+ large companies (e.g. Amazon, Hilton, Pfizer), that are committed to economically integrating refugees into the U.S. workforce. I’ve worked at Tent for the past 6 years.
The best part of my job is helping companies successfully hire refugees and integrate them into their workforces. Tent’s founder and the CEO of Chobani, Hamdi Ulukaya, likes to say that once a refugee has a job, they are no longer a refugee. It’s been wonderful seeing that belief come to life, as refugees employed by our member companies are able to rebuild their lives and thrive in their new communities once they secure employment. Just like resettlement agencies, we’ve been extremely busy over the last several years. The Biden administration has welcomed hundreds of thousands of forcibly displaced people to the United States over the past two years, which means that we have our work cut out for us to help refugees connect to work in our country. Tent has risen to the occasion by expanding our team and resources in the United States – and we’re working harder than ever to ensure that refugees in the United States have the opportunity to economically integrate into their communities across the country.
We’ve been excited to work closely with New American Pathways over the years to advance the economic integration of refugees in the Atlanta metro area. Tent has introduced NAP to dozens of large companies that are interested in partnering with NAP to recruit refugee talent in the area. NAP has referred many of its refugee clients to participate in Tent’s mentorship programs for LGBTQ refugees, Afghan refugees, refugee women and Hispanic refugees – through these programs, refugees receive one-on-one professional guidance and support from an employee at a Tent member company that they share an affinity with. Through our partnership, Tent and NAP have helped refugees find employment and mentorship opportunities in the Atlanta area – and we look forward to building on this effort in the coming years!