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A Toledo organization prepares immigrants for in-demand jobs. Now, workers worry for the future

A young woman wearing a hijab sits at a desk in front of a computer. She writes on a yellow piece of paper with a pencil.
Erin Gottsacker
/
The Ohio Newsroom
Tahani Mohamed reviews vocabulary words in a small classroom at Water for Ishmael. She's studying to become an office assistant, with hopes of someday working in the medical field.

In a small Toledo classroom, Tahani Mohamed reviews English vocabulary words: manager, photocopier, payroll.

She鈥檚 studying to be an office assistant with hopes of someday getting a job in a medical office.

In Sudan, Mohamed earned her Bachelor鈥檚 degree in medical laboratory science and worked as a phlebotomist.

But when she came to Toledo as a refugee two years ago, she had to start over, learning everything from how to send an email to how to take her kids to school.

鈥淲e walk to school in my country,鈥 she said. 鈥淗ere, we have to use the car. I learned [to] drive here.鈥

The Christian organization helped her get her feet on the ground. It offers English classes for immigrants and refugees like her, and once she mastered the language鈥檚 basics, she participated in its workforce development program.

The goal is to prepare people for in-demand professions in fields like health care and manufacturing, allowing them to earn a decent salary, while simultaneously filling gaps in the local workforce.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a great program,鈥 instructor Brenda Taylor said.

But recent changes to immigration policy and refugee admissions have given her pause: She worries about what鈥檚 in store for some of her students and about who the program will serve going forward.

Workforce development training

Taylor鈥檚 workforce development classes focus on teaching computer skills and job-specific jargon.

鈥淲e have a lot of people that come and right away they want to get a job,鈥 she said. 鈥淏ut if [their English] is at a really low level, we're setting them up to not succeed."

Tahani Mohamed smiles in front of a desk.
Erin Gottsacker
/
The Ohio Newsroom
Tahani Mohamed moved to Ohio from Sudan two years ago. She took English classes at Water for Ishmael, and then participated in its workforce development program.

鈥淲hat I'm hoping by the time they're done with my class is that they have enough of the vocabulary that when they start [vocational classes], at least they have a base knowledge of some of the words that are used in the profession or the skill that they're learning.鈥

When students finish her course, Taylor helps them enroll in vocational training. Water for Ishmael partners with other local organizations, like the YWCA and Cherry Street Mission Ministries, which train Toledoans for in-demand roles like child care workers, , welders and nursing assistants.

鈥淲e're specifically choosing positions that need to be filled here,鈥 said Devon Fitzpatrick, the workforce development manager for . The organization provides beds and meals for people experiencing homelessness, and classes to help people find stable employment.

鈥淲hen someone comes to America, their hope is that this place is going to be better than where they came from. And when we offer these kinds of opportunities, we're making good on that promise of what America stands for.鈥
Devon Fitzpatrick, Cherry Street Mission

When students graduate, Fitzpatrick says 80% find a job within one month. Their average pay is $20 an hour.

鈥淲hen someone comes to America, their hope is that this place is going to be better than where they came from,鈥 he said. 鈥淎nd when we offer these kinds of opportunities, we're making good on that promise of what America stands for.鈥

And American communities benefit too, Fitzpatrick says.

鈥淭he folks that we've seen in class from Water for Ishmael, they bring an attitude of determination, positivity, optimism and that鈥檚 something I think Toledo could use a lot more of,鈥 he said. 鈥淚鈥檓 excited to see how that continues in the workforce and in our neighborhoods.鈥

But over the past few months, the new Trump administration has made it more difficult for migrants to enter 鈥 and therefore, work 鈥 in the U.S.

Immigration restrictions

The day he took office, President Donald Trump signed an suspending the country鈥檚 refugee admissions program.

鈥淭he United States lacks the ability to absorb large numbers of migrants, and in particular, refugees, into its communities in a manner that does not compromise the availability of resources for Americans, that protects their safety and security, and that ensures the appropriate assimilation of refugees,鈥 the order said. 鈥淭his order suspends the [U.S. Refugee Admissions Program] until such time as the further entry into the United States of refugees aligns with the interests of the United States.鈥

The administration has also detained and deported each day, and 鈥 a form of temporary permission into the U.S. for immigrants from countries like Haiti and Venezuela who face urgent humanitarian crises.

Water for Ishmael is privately funded, so it is continuing to operate, but it鈥檒l likely have fewer immigrants and refugees to train going forward.

Republican State Representative Josh Williams doesn鈥檛 see that as a problem.

He says his constituents in northwest Ohio are concerned that migrants 鈥 especially those without legal status 鈥 are taking job opportunities away from average Ohioans.

鈥淲e have ready, willing, able-bodied Ohioans that are ready to work,鈥 he said. 鈥淎nd some of them need to be incentivized to work."

Williams says he believes in legal immigration managed in an orderly fashion, but that blanket parole policies under the Biden administration led to too many people coming into the United States, which strained services.

鈥淯ntil we remove the individuals who should not be here,鈥 he said, 鈥渨e're going to have to constrain the amount of people that can enter legally. Once we get that system put in place and tuned up right, I think it would be great for everybody, including those individuals that work hard to get here.鈥

In the meantime, Williams has supported increasing vocational opportunities for kids in schools and microcredentialing for adults to help them enter the workforce and climb the economic ladder.

鈥淭hat is where our focus should be instead of trying to import cheap labor,鈥 he said.

But Rob Moore, principal of the public policy analysis firm, Scioto Analysis, says economically, Ohio needs immigrants and refugees. His firm the economic potential of new Americans in central Ohio.

鈥淚t's not only that, 鈥楬ey, these people need a job because they're here, and we got to give them a job.鈥 It's also, 鈥楬ey, we need their services,鈥欌 he said. 鈥淢ost of the state is either flat or losing population and new Americans and immigrants are one of the best ways to try to reverse that trend.鈥

Blocking and deporting migrants, he says, will cause the state鈥檚 economy to shrink.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 just how the economy works,鈥 he said.

A future in Ohio

Regardless, Water for Ishmael鈥檚 Brenda Taylor says the economy isn鈥檛 the only reason Ohio should welcome immigrants and refugees.

鈥淲e are a very blessed country,鈥 she said. 鈥淚t is so important that we open our arms and open our hands to those around the world who are in desperate need of a home.鈥

Tahani Mohamed is making Toledo her home.

She recently finished Taylor鈥檚 technical English class, and now she鈥檚 enrolled in vocational school with hopes of getting back into the medical field as an office assistant.

鈥淚 want to have experience in my field,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 want to prepare for a master's degree in my field. I want to buy a big house for my family.鈥

She鈥檚 planning for a bright future in Ohio. But these days, fewer refugees can say the same.

Erin Gottsacker is a reporter for The Ohio Newsroom. She most recently reported for WXPR Public Radio in the Northwoods of Wisconsin.