Responding to COVID-19 for Refugees in West Michigan

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.

Previously, we wrote about how we have adapted our programming in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in our post, Navigating COVID-19 with Refugees. If you have yet to read that post, we encourage you to read it along with this update.

One thing that’s clear during this time is that it is hard to plan. Schools recently announcing their closures for the remainder of the school year was a big domino to fall as it relates to the Refugee Education Center’s programs. Since that time, we have worked with local schools and school districts to ensure refugee students can engage with distance learning initiatives by developing ways to work with students and serve the needs of individuals now. Below are a few highlights.

Navigation Services

Our Refugee Navigators are an indispensable link to the refugee community and this crisis is continuing to remind us of that. Beyond supporting over 180 different households in identifying and locating their closest community food source to combat food insecurity, our Navigators have also provided support for individuals to identify and apply for new government assistance programs as developed during the CARES Act and other state and federal initiatives, including unemployment, Pandemic EBT, and more. Additionally, Navigators are supporting survey work (described in the section below) as well as helping three new-to-Grand-Rapids families, with 10 school-aged children altogether, through school enrollment services – an especially challenging task when schools are closed!

Project Faulu (K-12 Support)

One difficulty for refugee students, and all under-resourced children, is attaining a primary education via distance learning without home internet access (or a reliable connection) or sufficient technology.

In partnership with 16 local school districts in Kent and Ottawa County, the Refugee Education Center has conducted a comprehensive survey of refugee households with children enrolled in a K-12 program to understand each student’s access to such resources. We are now working with each district to ensure teachers have this information and are able to adapt and support these students to their needs.

Our Project Faulu team has developed a YouTube channel to regularly publish student-support videos and reading-support videos. Our students are happy to receive this information from a familiar face! Additionally, the team has also begun to recruit volunteers who are willing and able to provide tutoring and mentorship, previously provided in-person, over the phone, or via video chat. As in the past, these students will be supported in their core curriculum, reading and language support, socio-emotional learning needs, and now in technology requirements and/or barriers in engaging with their school work.

Additionally, our High School Transitions (now Graduate + Grow) team is coordinating with local schools to determine their plans for supporting refugee students who are due to graduate in May and to help advise them through this transition period.

Hands Connected (Early Childhood Education)

In coordination with our partner organization, the Early Learning Neighborhood Collaborative, the Hands Connected Center continues to serve the 24 children who are enrolled in the Center by collecting or purchasing enough diapers and wipes to provide each child with diapers and wipes for the duration of being at home.

We have now supplied each child with four weeks’ worth of diapers and wipes and are currently planning and collecting items for two additional two-week supply drops.

Hands Connected Center educators are continuing to communicate weekly with Center families, providing support and inquiring about their holistic needs.