And So We Go On

 

This blog post is part of a series tracking the Refugee Education Center’s response and efforts to support the refugee community in West Michigan amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

 
 
 
Photo of smiley face and the words "stay safe" painted on pavement. Refugee Education Center, West Michigan

Last week, the Refugee Education Center announced that our two program sites in Grand Rapids would close due to the COVID-19 outbreak sweeping the globe. While we were gutted to make this decision, we are 100 percent committed to doing what is best for the community at large and doing our part to slow the spread of the virus.

The Refugee Education Center team is gutted because we know that the refugee families that we serve, like many other families in West Michigan, rely on programs and services such as ours. However, despite our program sites being closed, our services to the refugee community remain strong, and we are taking on new challenges!

 

Our team has seen an incredible outpouring of support from the community during these unparalleled times. We are proud that we are acting to ensure collaboration with other community organizations to avoid any duplication of services and to ensure that the refugee communities, in all languages, are up to date with the most relevant health and safety information, government updates, and local social services (such as food access).

 

Below are ways the Refugee Education Center is continuing our mission of supporting refugees in their journey to become full participants in West Michigan in the face of coronavirus.

Refugee Navigators

  • Because many families and their children rely on food assistance, a major concern and focus of the Refugee Education Center is to make sure each family we work with is connected with the nearest food distribution center. For those who speak English (and with readily available access to information), this may seem redundant; however, some refugees in the community may speak a language that makes it difficult to find timely and trustworthy information - or any information at all. This critical communication is connecting folks to the services that they otherwise wouldn't have known existed.

  • In addition to food access, our team is working to share translated information about best practices to keep families and communities healthy, as well as information from the CDC. We are also supporting families to the best of our ability, answering questions related to schools, government updates, and more.

K-12 Services

Photo of young student with mask looking at a book. Refugee Education Center, West Michigan.

  • We've begun sending packets of work to the students who attend the after-school tutoring program and are working with school districts to help connect families with any educational resources that they have made available.

  • For some refugee students in Kent County, home internet access is not a reality. While we love to see schools embracing digital methods of supporting students during this time, we are working to support those without readily available internet by sending out analog materials, coordinating with local schools, and mailing packets of materials to students’ homes.

  • Additionally, for refugee students (and many EL students), language barriers pose challenges and/or a need for our ongoing supplemental support while accessing digital learning materials. For this reason, we are working as fast as we can to make this service available digitally.

High School Transitions

  • The Refugee Education Center’s High School Transitions program coordinator is working directly with students who are on track to graduate in May but who might now be impacted by this schooling delay. We are working with partner schools to assist these students so that they can still graduate this summer with a traditional high school diploma.

 
 

How You Can Help

 

We at the Refugee Education Center are adapting, quickly, to the changing needs of the refugee population in West Michigan. Please consider supporting this effort, and our ongoing programs to ensure that no refugee family is left behind during this pandemic.

 
 
 
 

Many children in our community, including refugee children, are food insecure, which has only been exacerbated during the pandemic. Kids Food Basket is providing meals and nutrition services during this trying time.

 
 
 
 

Our partners at the Heart of West Michigan United Way have set up an emergency fund to support the immediate needs of those affected most by the pandemic in Grand Rapids.

 
 
 
 

Our partners at the Community Foundation of Holland/Zeeland are on the front lines of providing support to those who need it amidst the COVID-19 pandemic in the Holland and Zeeland areas.

 
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