The federal Office of Refugee Resettlement awards the Refugee School Impact Grant (RSIG) to fund activities that lead to effective integration and education of refugee children. Students between the ages of 5-18 who have been in the U.S. less than three years are served in this project.
Washington is one of numerous states receiving this grant for 2017-2018. Schools Out Washington (SOWA) administers this grant for the Office of Refugee and Immigrant Assistance. SOWA’s responsibilities are to:
- Support district-community partnerships in the implementation of their RSIG projects
- Provide technical assistance and training on grant related issues
- Offer district-community partnerships opportunities for training, professional development and additional materials and/or resources to enhance service delivery
- Evaluate the project’s effectiveness on student performance and integration
- Monitor performance of RSIG projects
There are ten school districts and fourteen community organizations that serve refugee school children and/or their parents to achieve the following goals:
- Ensure refugee students' high academic performance and successful integration
- Strengthen the skills, knowledge, and competence of parents, schools, and community based organizations for the benefit of refugee children
The school districts and their community partners provide an array of services, each tailored for their specific district and refugee students. The following services are examples of the kinds of services provided to school children, parents, and district personnel through this grant:
- Short term para-educator support for new arrivals to help them navigate their first days of school
- In class tutoring for struggling students
- After school tutoring during the week and weekends
- Assistance to high school students to complete high school requirements
- Workshops for parents on topics such as school navigation, bullying, and literacy; and math activities for home, high school preparation, and college readiness
- Training for district personnel to better understand refugee groups and the refugee experience
- Training for community organizations to strengthen their knowledge about instructional practices in schools as well as curriculum
For more information, visit the School’s Out Washington website.
ORIA Program Manager Contact Information:
Whitney Eich
whitney.eich@dshs.wa.gov
Self-sufficiency through support, education and training.
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