Employment barriers for highly skilled immigrants lead to ‘brain waste’ in Maine
Hundreds of immigrants have moved to Maine in recent years, including those with expertise employers in the state desperately need. But many can t get a job in their field.
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Celia Mantovani stands outside her home in Portland on Feb. 12. Mantovani is a Brazilian psychiatrist who hasn t been able to work in her field since moving to Maine. She is one of thousands of foreign professionals struggling to use their skills in the U.S. because of education and licensing barriers. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographe
When Celia Mantovani moved to Maine from Brazil six years ago, she came with more than two decades of experience as a psychiatrist working in hospitals and universities.
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Just two blocks off Monument Square in Portland, Maine, downhill from the public library, sits a squat, gray flatiron building. Inside is a soup kitchen that has provided three meals a day, every day, to hungry Mainers in its oft-crowded dining room for more than 39 years. The staff is welcoming, the location is central, and it’s nearly impossible to get kicked out. The buffet-style spreads include loaded chef salads and heaps of bread, vegetarian options, and hearty casseroles built to nullify the New England cold. Most important, there’s always dessert.
Since 1980, Preble Street has been the linchpin of the city’s response to homelessness and food insecurity and a life-sustaining resource for thousands. Joe Conroy is the senior director of food programs and operations at the agency that operates the eponymous soup kitchen. Leveraging a complex food-rescue and -donation system, his team churns out some 24,000 meals a month served in a cafeteria-style dining room. On any gi