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Open house kicks off student partnerships with refugee community

Mastery2014Activities for this academic year have officially begun for KIE’s two student-organized projects in partnership with local refugee families to empower local refugee youth and women. Both programs are ongoing efforts begun by undergraduates as a way to continue community involvement initiated as part of the DukeImmerse: Uprooted/Rerouted program. The MASTERY program (Mentorship, Academics, and Self-esteem: Tutoring and Engaging with Refugee Youth) connects K-12 youth with Duke students who mentor and inspire younger students by sharing their own passion for learning. The SuWA program unites local refugee women in support of each other as well as providing skills and assistance such as English language tutoring. An acronym for Supporting Women’s Action, the program has grown quickly over the last year and is currently working toward helping establish local business enterprises. Each of the programs will be meeting regularly on Tuesday evenings.

How to get involved

Duke students interested in mentoring local youth or local refugee families who wish to register school-aged children should contact Cece Mercer: cecelia.mercer@duke.edu.

Local refugee women who wish to participate in SuWA may contact Leena El-Sadek: leena.el.sadek@duke.edu. Duke students interested in becoming English tutors should contact Leah Catotti: leah.catotti@duke.edu.