U.S. Citizenship Preparation Class Graduates Monday

RICHLAND, Wash. — About 40 future U.S. citizens will graduate Monday, March 12, from a six-week course preparing them for the citizenship process.

The 6 p.m. ceremony is at Washington State University Tri-Cities in Richland, in the East Building Auditorium. The hour-long program is followed by an informal reception at 7 p.m. in the campus Commons.

WSU Tri-Cities Chancellor Vicky Carwein will provide a congratulatory welcome, followed by speakers talking about community partnership, empowerment and why to become a citizen.

The free “Civics Preparation” program is a partnership with WSU Tri-Cities, WorkSource Columbia Basin and the Benton County Republicans. This is the 10th class to graduate. Three to four sessions are held each year, with the next session starting in about three weeks. To get on the waiting list, go to WorkSource at 815 N. Kellogg St., in Kennewick, or call Ramona Sifuentez in the WSU Tri-Cities multicultural outreach office at 372-7283.

Several ethnic groups are represented by the 36 graduates. Their next step is to apply for U.S. citizenship, be interviewed, tested and fingerprinted.  The civics preparation class instructors follow up in six months to check on the graduates’ progress and to offer encouragement.

“It’s not easy, but it’s something they really want to do. So they sacrifice to do it,” Sifuentez said of the time-consuming and expensive citizenship process.