REFUGEES ENRICHING NC COMMUNITIES

The Old North State has long been a center of growth and community-building in the South. Recently, the relocation of Afghan citizens to North Carolina has shed light on the long and complex history of immigrant and refugee members of our state. Refugee members of the NC community come from all different countries around the world, including El Salvador, Haiti, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Liberia, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, Eritrea, Somalia, Ukraine, Russia, Burma/Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, among others. NC has and continues to be a state enriched by the diversity of its population.

UNC World View also recognizes that our state is enriched by the work of educators who welcome refugee students and help them adjust to life in NC. We share the following best practices for educators working alongside their refugee and immigrant students from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network and Washington University:

• Listen with empathy and open-mindedness. Students may want to share their experiences and heritage with educators or their classmates. Researchers recommend “[helping students] know how to approach you by being specific about how and when it is appropriate to talk.” Educators can also use creative assignments to give students the opportunity to share more about their identities.
• Express appreciation for all students’ identities—visually. Researchers affirm that incorporating diverse languages and images into school displays is important to helping students feel at home in their school.
• Remain open-minded and avoid generalizations. Recognize the individuality of students’ experiences, especially those coming from areas of conflict. Be sensitive to the variety of opinions and beliefs students may hold and avoid asking them to represent the totality of their nation’s refugee experience.
• Help students get extra support where needed. Students may benefit from additional academic or emotional support as they adjust to the curriculum and, in some cases, process emotionally intense or traumatic experiences.
• Help students engage in “prosocial activities.” Researchers found that refugee students “expressed their wish to help others, to make meaning out of their experiences, and to make a difference in the world.” They recommend helping interested students engage in meaningful community volunteer work.

We also encourage you to check out the following resources to better help students feel at home in their new classrooms and state.

Guides for Teachers:

• Teachers in Crisis Contexts Training for Primary School Teachers (UNESCO)
• Helping Teachers Help Refugees (UNESCO)
• Teaching About Refugees (UNHCR- Guide to terminology surrounding refugees, immigrants, migrants, and other groups to help guide classroom conversations)
• Refugee Education: Integration Models and Practices in OECD Countries
• Supporting Immigrant and Refugee Students Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic (OECD, 2020)
• Helping Immigrant Students to Succeed at School—and Beyond (OECD)

Contextual Information:

• Article: “The Story of North Carolina is the Story of Immigrants” (Indy Week)
• Profile Pages: UNCG Center for New North Carolinians: Immigrant and Refugee Backgrounds

• • Refugees from Syria
  • Refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo
  • Darfuri Refugees
  • Eritrean Refugees in Shimelba Refugee Camp
  • Refugees from Iraq
  • Bhutanese Refugees in Nepal
  • Refugees from Burma
  • Liberian Refugees
  • The Somali Bantu
  • The Montagnards
• NC Justice Center: Home to Me: Immigrant Stories from NC

Centers and Resources for Refugee and Immigrant Families:

• U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants North Carolina (USCRI North Carolina)
• UNC Greensboro’s Center for New North Carolinians
  • Immigration Services
  • Interpreter Access Project
  • Greensboro Refugee Employment Advancement Team
  • Immigrant Health Access Project
• Carolina Refugee Resettlement Agency
• Office of Refugee Resettlement—Programs and Services by City
• Mecklenburg Country Refugee Public Assistance