Citizenship Chief Aguilar meets public in Nashville today

The INS is no more. It has been carved up and spread across various offices inside the Department of Homeland Security. The part of the old INS that was responsible for processing immigration documents and providing immigration services was transferred to a new bureau known as U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services ("USCIS").

Inside the USCIS is the Office of Citizenship, which is responsible for civic integration of immigrants at two key points: when they first become permanent residents and when they are ready and eligible to begin the formal naturalization process. The Chief of the Office of Citizenship is Alfonso Aguilar.

Mr. Aguilar will be in Nashville today to discuss immigration. Details below:

Immigration Meeting
with
Chief Alfonso Aguilar
USCIS Office of Citizenship
Washington D.C.

· Discussion of Immigration Issues that Affect Us All!

· Perspectives from the Washington D.C. Point of View!

· Share your Ideas with a Washington Insider!

This event is free of charge and comes to you as a courtesy of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

Place: Coleman Community Center (next to the park), 384 Thompson Lane (at the intersection of Nolensville Rd & Thompson Lane), Nashville, Tennessee 37211.

Date: February 7, 2006

Time: 1:00 – 2:00 PM

For more information please call the Nashville Task Force on Refugees & Immigrants (615) 569-1947 or (615) 668-0128, or the Woodbine Community Center (615) 850-3449.

According to the Office of Citizenship web site, Mr. Aguilar was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2003 and is "the first Chief of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ Office of Citizenship. As Chief of the Office of Citizenship, Mr. Aguilar is charged with leading efforts to promote an understanding of the civic principles on which this nation was founded and increase public awareness of the benefits and responsibilities associated with U.S. citizenship."

"Mr. Aguilar has served in the Bush administration since 2001. He has experience within both the U.S. government and the government of Puerto Rico serving as Press Secretary for Latin America and the Caribbean at the U.S. Agency for International Development, as Deputy Director of Public Affairs for the U.S. Department of Energy, as the Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration, and as Press Secretary for the Puerto Rico Governor’s executive team. Mr. Aguilar is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and received his Juris Doctor from the University of Puerto Rico."