The Connecticut Institute for Refugees and Immigrants

The Connecticut Institute for Refugees and Immigrants (CIRI) is a statewide nonprofit organization that assists refugees and immigrants resolve legal, economic, linguistic and social barriers so that they become self-sufficient, integrated, and contributing members of the community. CIRI achieves this mission by providing a compassionate array of high-quality legal, social and educational programming and by promoting cross cultural understanding and decent treatment for all. Each year, CIRI assists close to 5,000 individuals from its offices in Bridgeport, Stamford and Hartford, providing transformative services for refugees, immigrants, survivors of torture, and survivors of human trafficking.    

"We envision Connecticut as a place where new Americans may fully participate in our culturally diverse communities, where low-income families may have access to affordable immigration services and be reunited with family, where survivors of crime and persecution may have the resources needed to become self-supporting and healed and where ethnic diversity is valued as a cultural and economic strength by all."  

CIRI's Timeline  

  • 1918: The YWCA establishes the International Institute of Connecticut in Bridgeport to provide services to new immigrants, including social and legal aid, English classes, and programs celebrating immigrant cultures.   
  • 1935: The International Institute of Connecticut (IICONNbecomes an independent organization. 
  • 1940s-1950s: ICONN resettles Italian, Hungarian, and other Eastern European immigrants and refugees resettle in the Bridgeport area following World War II, providing legal assistance, social services, language instruction, and cross-cultural education.  
  • 1975: Following the Vietnam War, ICONN mobilizes the community to assist thousands of Southeast Asian immigrants seeking political asylum in the United StatesICONN opens offices in Stamford and Hartford, which enables the organization to help Southeast Asian immigrants throughout Connecticut. 
  • 1980: With new federal policies addressing the needs of both refugees and immigrants, IICONN emerges as the premier nonprofit provider of immigration and refugee services in the state. The Refugee Act of 1980 establishes a system for accepting refugees into the country, and provides federal funds to support IICONN’s provision of resettlement services to refugees. 
  • 1986: IICONN serves thousands of undocumented immigrants who pursued a path to legal citizenship under the Immigration Reform and Control Act.
  • 1990s: IICONN helps thousands of refugees from Bosnia, Serbia, Croatia and Kosovo fleeing the conflict in the former Yugoslavia.  
  • 2006: IICONN launches Project Rescue at the urging of the U.S. Attorney’s Office to provide critical services to survivors of human trafficking in Connecticut. 
  • 2013: IICONN wins federal Survivors of Torture grant award and establishes Survivor Services to provide legal and social services for refugees and asylum seekers. 
  • 2017: IICONN launches its new name, Connecticut Institute for Refugees and Immigrants, celebrating a century of service empowering immigrants, refugees and survivors of human trafficking and torture to thrive in Connecticut.