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Vietnamese Friendship Association 

Description

Vietnamese Friendship Association (VFA) was established in 1978 to respond to short-term resettlement needs facing Vietnamese refugees in Seattle. Presently, the VFA serves low-income, primarily Vietnamese youth and families in Seattle's Rainier Valley area, especially in the New Holly neighborhood through after-school, youth leadership, parental involvement and other programs.

Mission Statement
To empower the Vietnamese community to succeed while bridging, preserving, and promoting cultural heritage.
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Vietnamese Friendship Association
7101 Martin Luther King Jr Way S Ste 212 
Seattle 
WA
98118-3592 
(206) 760-1573 

Mr. Vu Le, MSW 
Executive Director 

Programs

Vietnamese Friendship Association Programs

Saturday English School (SES)             
VFA continues our in partnership with the Secondary Bilingual Orientation Center to offer our weekly Saturday program. The program helps recent-arrival students from diverse countries increase their skills in math and English, while understanding and appreciating theirs and each others’ cultures.                     

The Community Action and Research Empowerment (CARE) Project                  
A participatory action research project where elders and college-aged youth work together to assess the strengths and needs of the Vietnamese community in Southeast Seattle, and develop a long-term plan to address those needs and advance the community.                  

The Youth Leadership Council                 
The Youth Leadership Council is an intensive program that provides training and mentorship to promising Vietnamese youth with an interest in, and potential, to step into leadership roles within our communities. This program is open to high school students, grades 9-12.

Recent Successes and Current Challenges

In 2010, the Vietnamese Friendship Association (VFA) successfully completed Phase I of the Community Action Research and Empowerment (CARE) Project. CARE was designed to engage the Vietnamese community in identifying problems and challenges, developing priorities, creating a community action plan, and mobilizing resources to implement the plan.

During the year, our Youth Action Team conducted 16 focus groups, 85 interviews with community leaders, and collected 316 surveys. Through this research, Team Members learned several important things about the Vietnamese community’s perceptions of their strengths, weaknesses, needs, and hopes for the future.

We are currently in Phase II of the CARE Project—a distinct and new stage of work. The purpose of Phase II is to engage community members in developing an action plan for the community based on the findings of Phase I—which focused on community needs assessment.

Due to the positive responses from Phase I, the community is anxious and excited to help develop a strong plan that will unite the community and guide its development during the next five to ten years. Awareness of the project is now strong, as it has been featured in several newspapers, including Northwest Asian Weekly, International Examiner, and Northwest Vietnamese News. Building a strong constituency will be a critical part of this Phase; the success of the plan will depend on a sense of ownership among community members and the willingness to help in the implementation.

Evaluation


Vietnamese Friendship Association (VFA) serves low-income, primarily Vietnamese youth and families in the Rainier Valley, especially in the NewHolly neighborhood through out-of-school, youth leadership, and parental involvement programs.

Proven Success
While the central goal of VFA initiatives is to improve academic achievement among Vietnamese immigrant youth, all programming is designed to help young people develop such critical assets as commitment to learning and community service, as well as social and cultural competencies.

Use of Best Practices
VFA leadership has made research and evaluation a major priority for the organization. Through its partnership with the Seattle School District, VFA uses data (grades and WASL scores) to track the academic progress of youth participants and makes program modifications as needed. They are also working with Social Venture Partners to improve their evaluation system.

Sustainability
In the past five years, VFA has experienced tremendous growth in budget, programs, staff and number of clients served. They are a Social Venture Partner grantee and are receiving support to strengthen their infrastructure including, financial management, technology, fund development, board development and evaluation of programs.

Collaboration
VFA staff also works to raise awareness about Vietnamese community needs by serving on local refugee advisory boards, partnering with community liaisons from the city's parks and police departments, and working in close collaboration with the Seattle Public Schools Bilingual Education Center.

VFA is one of only two direct-service agencies in King County focused primarily on the Vietnamese community. Historically the Vietnamese community has been underserved because the capacity of these organizations has been weak. VFA’s Executive Director has been with the organization for 6 years and has been serving as the E.D. for the past three years. They have been successful in diversifying the organization's funding base and receive support from Social Venture Partners, the Gates Foundation, and United Way. They are re-energizing and expanding their board, as well as expanding the services they offer to students and their parents. In order to minimize costs they partner with Americorps as well as with organizations like the University of Washington who provide students that serve as tutors and program assistants. They have been successful in increasing their capacity.

Grant History with The Seattle Foundation:

Grants Awarded through The Seattle Foundation Grantmaking Program:

DateAmountPurpose
9/10/2010 $15,000.00support general operating expenses.
6/27/2008 $20,000.00support general operating expenses.

Financials

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