A Look Into REI

Now that you’ve formally met us, we would like to introduce ourselves on a more personal level. So hello from our founder!

I formed the Refugee Education Initiative to bridge the growing gap in refugee access to education. My first ever experience witnessing this gap was my freshman year of college. What was supposed to be a volunteer day of enrolling refugees from Afghanistan into English language classes, opened my eyes to a world I was admittedly uneducated about. In speaking to the clients that day, I learned about how many refugees want to continue their education but have no idea where to start. There is no denying that the higher education system is notoriously hard to navigate. For the next few years, I had this knowledge of a problem but had no idea what to do with it. That was until June 2024 when I learned about a student at a local community college who was a refugee, had taught herself English, and was working three jobs to pay for one summer class– all while living in a shelter. I couldn’t sit on this knowledge and not do anything to change it. And thus, REI was born.

In its simplest form, my priority and the main goal of REI is to foster access. I’ve long struggled with the idea that half of the battle to succeeding is having access to the right resources and information. This brings me to our one-stop-shop resource structure. To level the playing field as much as possible, we have compiled an ever-growing comprehensive list of essential resources refugees may need for college, from applying to schools to securing scholarships.

I also recognize that navigating these systems is much more challenging when you lack someone to turn to for guidance or advice. That is why we also have the option of guidance meetings. These meetings allow us to get to know our clients and their goals personally, giving us the opportunity to be someone they can lean on. We are in the business of helping however we can, in whatever form that may look like.

Now that we are officially public, we are excited to begin our outreach efforts! If you would like to collaborate with us or join our organization, we would love to hear from you! We also hope to continue these article posts as a way to connect with our community and relay information about opportunities, resources, and what we are up to. Please consider subscribing to our website and following us on Instagram (@refugeeeducationinitiative) to stay updated on our journey as well.

As a personal note from myself– thank you for taking the time to learn about something I am passionate about. I am so proud to have brought this to life and can’t wait to get it off the ground. I believe deeply in advocating for others in all facets of life and am immensely grateful to share that with you. 

Please feel free to reach out to us, we look forward to hearing from you!