DOVER, Del. - Milford native Rony Baltazar López has been named the inaugural director of Delaware's Office of New Americans, announced recently by Gov. Matt Meyer to support the immigrant community.
According to the governor's office, the new office will offer citizenship assistance, coordinate with partner organizations, and ensure that Delaware's newest neighbors have access to language support, workforce development, and civic-engagement resources. The governor's office also said immigrants contribute $1.4 billion to Delaware's economy annually. Nearly half of the states across the country have an Office of New Americans or something similar to support that community. In Delaware, 11.5 percent of the population is immigrants, according to the American Immigration Council.
The Office of New Americans will be housed within the Delaware Department of State and will coordinate with the Delaware Department of Justice's Office of Immigration Assistance, which helps immigrants with citizenship assistance.
The governor's office said lawmakers first proposed creating the office in 2023 and again this year through Senate Bill 27, but after SB 27 did not advance, the 2026 operating budget directed the Department of State to use a vacant position "to be dedicated toward addressing immigrant issues in Delaware," and that position was then filled by appointing Baltazar López.
Baltazar López previously served as director of policy and communications at the Delaware Department of State and brings lived experience as the son of immigrants to the role. Before joining the department, he worked as a communications staffer for the Delaware Attorney General's Office. He began his civil career in 2017 in Washington, D.C., as a legislative staffer for then-U.S. Sen. Tom Carper, where he assisted with a portfolio focused on immigration, homeland security, and foreign affairs.
"It means taking the first step in the state of Delaware to ensure that our immigrant population, our community, their voices are heard and that there are vehicles and opportunities for them via the state process to help them integrate into our societies," Baltazar López said.
He was appointed to the Delaware Hispanic Commission by Gov. John Carney in 2020 and was elected vice chair in 2021. He currently serves as the youngest member of the commission and also sits on several boards, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Delaware. He is the board president for La Red Health Center. From 2019 through 2022, he served on the Milford School Board of Education, including two years as vice president.
"It means taking the first-hand experiences from those different board ships, different opportunities, and in either my career or extracurriculars, and taking that and understanding that I have all this experience and knowledge, and I'm able to shape and mold all those experiences into policy and to the administration of an office," he said. "I think that's really critical for this pivotal moment in time in which the office of New Americans is about to be the thing in Delaware for the immigrant community."
He expanded on the significance of the position.
"It means for my family, and I think for immigrants in general, that this is an opportunity. This is a step in the right direction. It's a welcoming state. I think the governor has made it clear that the state of Delaware is a state of neighbors. So, ensuring that everybody here feels welcomed, is integrated into our state's culture and society," he said.
"I'm just thrilled that I can bring my experiences to life," Baltazar López added.
He also reflected on the work ahead.
"For me, it means being able to highlight those experiences, those challenges, those barriers, and making sure that we address them and minimize them so that the next generation of immigrants that come here or those who are living here, can have a better life because at the end of the day, we don't want to make life harder than what it really needs to be," he said.
Baltazar López noted the broader context around immigration.
"I think it's at a pivotal moment right now with everything going on at the federal administration with immigration, and that the state is taking a step in the right direction to ensure that our immigrants feel safe, welcomed," he said.
Neyda Albarrán, who is involved with the immigrant community in various capacities, said anything to help the community is a blessing.
"Our systems are very unique to the United States, and so people from other countries might feel a little lost navigating through these systems and inserting themselves into these systems," Albarrán said. "Having an office that will be there to kind of help them navigate and understand how the system works as they become new citizens and incorporate into our community in the many ways that they do and have, will be such a help."
Baltazar López said the Office of New Americans plans to work alongside organizations that have long served immigrants across the state.
"It's an opportunity to convene all these organizations and make sure that we're all working in unison and not in silos, because at the end of the day, it doesn't matter if you're... an immigrant in Wilmington, or an immigrant down in Selbyville, the needs are still there and the challenges are still there," he said.
The office is preparing for a statewide listening tour to better understand the needs of immigrants and the organizations that support them. The tour is expected to begin in January 2026.
"I would just generally encourage anybody when the listening tours are up and running to attend because this isn't just a work for immigrants. It's an opportunity for everybody to provide input because when our immigrants are thriving and succeeding in our state, everybody succeeds at the end of the day," he said.