Refugee Minors Program Unaccompanied One's Eslpod U.S Department

The Unaccompanied Refugee Minors Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is designed to help "unaccompanied" (alone; without other people) refugee "minors" (children; people who are less than 18 years old) be safe and develop the "skills" (abilities to do certain things) and knowledge needed to succeed as adults and be "self-sufficient" (able to meet one's own needs, without depending on others, such as making enough money to cover one's own expenses).

The U.S. State Department "identifies" (finds and names) young refugees who do not have family members in the country who can take care of them "in the long term" (for an extended period of time; not temporary). Once these refugee minors are placed in the Unaccompanied Refugee Minors Program, they are "matched" (paired up) with a "foster care home" where a family or a "group home" (a place where many people with similar needs live together) can help them grow into "adulthood" (the state of being an adult).

The program began in the 1980s and has served almost 13,000 refugee minors. The program always tries to "unite" (bring together) refugee minors with their parents or other "relatives" (members of one's family). When this isn't possible, the program tries to provide many of the things that the refugee minors need. This includes housing, food, clothing, medical care, education, language instruction, "career counseling" (help determining what type of job one should try to get), "cultural activities" (ways to learn more about the United States and its people), and more.