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New citizens gather in Detroit under auspices of the New Americans Campaign.

13,400 NEW AMERICANS: Gov. Snyder Says Immigrants Strengthen State, Nation

New Arrivals Said Involved in a Third of Michigan High Tech Startups

December 4, 2013       Leave a Comment
By: Dave Rogers

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Michigan is way ahead of the curve on immigration, with an estimated 13,400 persons projected to become new citizens this year in the state.

Although the state is lagging behind on entrepreneurship, new arrivals are helping us to catch up to fast-moving new business centers like San Jose, California, Denver, etc., especially in the key high tech arena.

State statistics show that immigrants boost the economy, with new arrivals involved in 32 percent of the high tech start-ups in Michigan over a recent 15-year period.

High-tech startups are a key driver of job creation throughout the United States, according to research by the technology policy coalition Engine and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

Though they start lean, new high-tech companies grow rapidly in the early years, adding thousands of jobs along the way. In fact, high-tech startup job creation is so robust that it more than makes up for the job destruction from early-stage businesses failures -- a key distinction from the private sector as a whole where job losses from early-stage failures turns this group into net job destroyers.

Ian Hathaway, an economic advisor to Engine and author of the report, says: "By comparing the high-tech sector with other firms across the economy, we see the job-creating power that growth-oriented technology startups harness, compared with other young businesses. Observing these trends, it is clear that encouraging the creation of new tech businesses can boost our economy."

Previous Kauffman research has shown that new and young firms are responsible for net job creation, not small businesses in general. This report contrasts business and job creation dynamics in the entire U.S. private sector with the innovative high-tech sector -- defined here as the group of industries with very high shares of employees in the STEM fields of science, technology, engineering and math. These differences are highlighted at the national level, as well as detailing regions throughout the country where high-tech startups are being formed each year.

Twenty-five people entered the Michigan State Capitol on Wednesday as citizens of 18 countries, but left as Americans -- and Michiganders.

The ceremony was co-hosted by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, with U.S. Federal Court Judge Robert Jonker presiding.

Last month Michigan Secretary of State representatives offered new citizens the opportunity to register to vote after a naturalization ceremony in Troy, according to Secretary of State Ruth Johnson.

The event was held at the American Polish Cultural Center where approximately 150 new citizens participated.

"Our newest citizens have followed every step in the process to naturalization and I am proud of their hard work," Johnson said. "I encourage them to take one more step, and that is to register and then vote."

People also may register to vote at their local clerk's office, a Secretary of State branch office or by mail.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Bureau, part of the Department of Homeland Security, conducted the ceremony, during which residents who want to become citizens take the oath of citizenship and receive their certificate of naturalization. This followed a detailed application process including interviews, fingerprinting and English and civics tests.

"Michigan is proud of its diversity and rich history of immigrants who helped build our state," Snyder said. "We must create welcoming communities that leverage the full potential of all who live there, capitalizing on different perspectives, cultures and talents for knowledge, creativity and innovation to thrive."

This year about 13,400 people in Michigan will take the oath of American citizenship. About a dozen naturalization ceremonies are performed in Michigan each month.

Snyder said people come to Michigan because they see the opportunities for education, high-skill jobs and an entrepreneurial spirit to start their own business.

About 40 percent of Fortune 500 companies were started by immigrants or children of immigrants, and 32 percent of Michigan's high-tech startups between 1990 and 2005 had an immigrant founder.

"It's possible that one of the people becoming a citizen today could be the next Meijer, Dow, Vlasic or Ford -- great Michigan companies started by immigrants or children of immigrants," Snyder said. "Our success has always been the product of our unique capacity to welcome the contributions and spirit of entrepreneurship of all people."

Meanwhile, a nationwide effort to enroll new citizens has come to Michigan.

The Detroit New American Campaign (DNAC) is a collaborative project of six immigrant-based organizations whose purposes are to mobilize and leverage local and national resources, civic and community partners, immigrant communities, and volunteers in an effort to promote and assist naturalization for eligible lawful permanent residents (LPRs) throughout the metropolitan Detroit area.

The project encourages naturalization and its benefits through media-based advocacy, informational sessions, and one-on-one meetings with immigration attorneys in individual appointments, clinics, and/or group workshops.

Free citizenship classes and naturalization clinics are available in Detroit, Dearborn, Hamtramck, and Troy for those eligible for naturalization.

Information is available at detroitnac.org.

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Dave Rogers

Dave Rogers is a former editorial writer for the Bay City Times and a widely read,
respected journalist/writer in and around Bay City.
(Contact Dave Via Email at carraroe@aol.com)

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