Before the family arrives on campus, it is important to create a welcoming atmosphere. We hope to do this through various community activities such as talks and workshops by speakers and experts who have worked with refugee resettlement, community forums and sessions on issues related to cultural sensitivity, and dorm-specific conversations with students.
Once the family arrives, they will have access to all of the refugee resettlement agency's services such as ESL tutoring, cultural orientation, and job searches. However, it is an incredible opportunity for our campus to be involved in this kind of work with the family. For example, our Career Center can assist them with job hunting, the International Student office can assist the family with governmental paperwork, forms and obtaining social security numbers, family members can audit classes, students can help family members with tutoring or the children with their studies, our student clubs can employ their passions and focus to serve or engage the family, and campus members who speak the refugee family's native language can act as cultural brokers and assist the family with navigating the process of adjustment to living in their new home. At Guilford College, we are especially lucky to have one of the best and most sustainable farms in the U.S. This will allows us to provide the family with fresh produce.
During their 90 days, we will help the family find suitable and affordable housing into which we will help them move at the end of the 90 days period. The family is required to become self-sufficient by the federal government at the end of this Reception and Placement period. However, we will work diligently to maintain connections with them even as they physically move off of our campus.