NJ Regional team

NAR in New Jersey.

2 ambassadors organizing the count locally. 189 Albanians on the registry from New Jersey so far.

Director of Outreach

National outreach director.

Sets cross-state strategy and recruits state directors. New Jersey's ambassadors report up here until a state-specific director is seated.

Iliriana Sela

Director of Outreach · National

New Jersey ambassadors report to Iliriana.

Ambassadors in New Jersey

Regional ambassadors on the ground.

A

Alisa Hasanaj

Regional Ambassador · Bridgewater

I’m a strong fit for this role because I bring both a communications background and a genuine connection to the Albanian-American community in New Jersey. As a fluent Albanian speaker with close ties through family and social networks, I understand how to engage our community in an authentic way. Professionally, I have experience in client relations, communications, and digital engagement through my roles at Chubb and managing social media for a local business. These roles have strengthened my ability to build relationships, communicate clearly, and drive participation. In my first 90 days, I would focus on identifying key community networks across New Jersey—local businesses, universities like Rutgers, and existing community groups—while leveraging word-of-mouth and social media to raise awareness and encourage early participation in the registry. I also have a strong network of peers, colleagues, and community members who can vouch for my communication skills, reliability, and work ethic. This is the right time for me to step into a more active role and contribute to strengthening and connecting the Albanian-American community.
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Vera Xhafaj-Puka

Regional Ambassador · Cliffside Park

I am Vera Xhafaj-Puka. I have a close network with Albanian People in NJ. I am the Editor in Chief of Revista "Asaj", an online magazine that has in focus Albanian Women who live and work in Diaspora. Will use all my channels to expand NAR and have Albanians in NJ to sign up to the NAR.
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Why New Jersey matters

A real count is where the work starts.

ACS 2024 estimate

18,304

Federal count

Community estimate

73,216–91,520

Methodology page

On NAR today

189

From New Jersey

Capture rate

1.03%

vs. ACS

As New Jersey's Albanian community becomes visible in the data systems institutions actually use, the recognition story gets stronger — for bilingual-ballot petitions in jurisdictions with significant limited-English Albanian populations, for hospital interpreter staffing, for school home-language reporting, and for university heritage programs. None of these unlock automatically from a count; they come from sustained organizing on top of one. The Census ACS stays the official federal source; NAR builds the parallel community count alongside it.

New Jersey concentrations

Bergen, Hudson, Passaic Counties

New Jersey's Albanian population is concentrated along the Hudson corridor. A credible community count gives north-Jersey hospitals serving Bergen and Hudson a documented basis to advocate for Albanian interpreter staffing.

New Jersey ranks in the published ACS Albanian-ancestry counts at 18,304 (2024). Nationwide the Census counts 224,000 Albanian Americans while community estimates put us close to a million — and the same gap shows up here. NAR is the community-led parallel count that sits alongside the ACS, one self-attestation at a time.

Read the full methodology →

What's happening in New Jersey

2 upcoming events.

Festivals, services, fundraisers, and community gatherings the New Jersey team is tracking.

See all New Jersey events →

Apply

Join the New Jersey team.

Each state seats up to three Regional Ambassadors plus one state outreach lead. Volunteer role. Listed publicly. Reimbursed expenses for one local event a year.

Apply to lead Book a 20-min call

Or browse all states with open spots →