HomeIssues in EducationPlaces of Refuge

Places of Refuge

This series focuses on refugee students and their journeys, their new lives and hopes for a future in West Michigan, and the many ways schools and community organizations are working to meet their needs.

District, literacy center helps parents learn English

Kentwood Erin Albanese

Learning English helps immigrant parents help their children in school...

From classroom to lunch room, schools help Afghan students adjust

Places of Refuge Charles Honey

The recent influx of refugee students from Afghanistan has put teachers on the front lines of helping students adjust academically and recover from trauma...

On his own since 12, refugee student sets his sights on college and career

Kent ISD Morgan Jarema

‘Education is the universal key to unlocking any door,’ says Myanmar native an...

He’s a leader who is always learning

Student Leaders Morgan Jarema

Kent ISD’s interpreter program, now in its second year, is helping ESL students find purpose in their new country using gifts they honed in their native countries...

First-gen college grad gives credit to parents, K-12 years

Caledonia Alexis Stark

Amer Bektaš is the son of Bosnian refugees, a sports enthusiast and radio voice, and is months away from being the first generation in his family to graduate college...

Area schools prepare for the arrival of Afghan refugees

Classrooms for All Joanne Bailey-Boorsma

More than 200 participants have attended Kent ISD programs designed to highlight ways to welcome students and their families...

‘God gives me hope’: a refugee student’s hard journey to graduation

Kelloggsville Phil de Haan

On a journey from the Congo to Grand Rapids, faith, and the people placed in his path, have helped a Kelloggsville senior deal with some tough circumstances...

‘All of their stories come together’

Places of Refuge Erin Albanese

In a school district that is home to many not born in the U.S., seventh graders dive deep into learning about and welcoming newcomers from all over the world...

Walking through the ‘door of opportunity’

Kenowa Hills Hannah Lentz

Wyoming high school students Mounahinde (Terry) Almame and Rohim Mohammed visited Lisa Monroe and Jodi VanDam’s fifth-grade class to talk about their experiences as refugees...

Two classes, two ways to learn about refugees

Lowell Morgan Jarema

Students at Cherry Creek Elementary and Lowell Middle School are giving thought to what it means to have to leave home and make a new one, thousands of miles away...

Giving back as others gave to them

Student Leaders Erin Albanese

Three sisters, refugees from Rwanda, devote their Monday evenings to volunteering at the Learning Café, an education center in Grand Rapids that serves refugee children...

Students help refugee peers adjust to life, schools in the U.S.

Multi Districts Morgan Jarema

Students from a handful of area high schools are making an impact at two West Michigan organizations tasked with helping refugee students and their families succeed...

Refugee author tells students, ‘It is the story of your community’

Godwin Heights Erin Albanese

Sandra Uwiringiyimana’s story of fleeing conflict and leaving her country behind resonated with students who read and discussed her book, “How Dare the Sun Rise: Memoirs of a War Child.”

‘If I Can Do it, You Can Do It’

Kentwood Erin Albanese

Dressed in red, resemblant of flaming hot sauce, Bowen Elementary fifth-grader Yoe Shi Yar played David Tran, a Vietnamese immigrant who founded Huy Fong...

‘The Goal is to Keep Them Reading’

Kent City Janice Holst

Second-graders Leonel Santiago and Carlos Saldana hit an exciting benchmark this fall: They started reading their first chapter books. Besides helping them learn the important...