Building Higher Education and Workforce Pipelines for Resettled Refugees
With an influx of people fleeing war and persecution across the globe, including 76,000 Afghans seeking refuge in the U.S. after the Taliban takeover and 1.7 million Ukrainians currently escaping the Russian invasion, the Biden Administration expects the United States will resettle 125,000 refugees in the 2022 fiscal year — a dramatic increase from former President Trump’s 15,000 refugee cap set before leaving office.
Nonprofit volunteer agencies that provide reception and placement services are facing tremendous challenges due to the rapidly growing number of refugees in need, while refugees are confronted with numerous resettlement hurdles, including finding work and continuing education.
Many refugees come to the U.S. highly educated but lacking the professional credentials and English proficiency to get hired in comparable previously held positions. In order to financially support their families, refugees often take the first available job, regardless of whether it matches their skillset, and both the refugees and the communities miss out on leveraging that human capital for local and regional economic development.
Refugee children face numerous challenges as well, including educational disruption due to conflict and displacement as well as physical deprivations and psychological traumas. Consequently, refugee children must overcome more obstacles than the general U.S. student population in order to progress from K-12 to higher education and onto prosperous careers.
- How can institutions of higher education help refugees transition to living and working in the United States?
- To what degree can universities, four-year colleges, and community colleges propel workforce development by assisting refugees with career guidance, credential assessment/recognition, continuing education, and technical training?
- Can educational pipelines for refugees be developed that reach back to K-12 and give refugee children access to higher education and professional career opportunities?
This 90-minute roundtable discussion over Zoom will address these questions on higher education, workforce pipelines, and more.
Friday, April 8, 1:30-3:00pm (via Zoom)
Building Higher Education and Workforce Pipelines for Resettled Refugees
Moderator:
Rey Koslowski, Professor of Political Science & Director of the Master of International Affairs Program, Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy, University at Albany
Lead Questions & Panel:
What are the biggest barriers to refugees accessing higher education in the US and how can these barriers be overcome?
Bernhard Streitwieser, Associate Professor, George Washington University Graduate School of Education and Human Development
How can community colleges help refugees get on pathways from secondary to post-secondary certificate and degree programs that lead to prosperous careers?
Amy Loyd, Senior Advisor, Office of the Secretary at the U.S. Department of Education
How have school reforms in Afghanistan shaped the education of the Afghan children who are resettling in the U.S. and will these changes ease Afghan children’s transition to the U.S. educational system?
Enayat Nasir, Fulbright Scholar, School of Education, University at Albany
What can Americans learn from refugee education elsewhere in the world to improve US education pipelines for refugee students from K-12 into higher education and what roles can refugee educators play in building those pipelines?
Sarah Dryden-Peterson, Associate Professor, Harvard Graduate School of Education
How can higher education institutions partner with businesses and government to build professional pathways for refugees in order to meet employer demand for skilled workers?
Laura Gonzalez-Murphy, Director, NYS Immigration Policy and Research, New York Department of State
How does the Presidents’ Alliance help with the resettlement of refugees and how can scholars and practitioners of refugee education contribute to these efforts?
Miriam Feldblum, Executive Director, Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration
What opportunities can colleges offer to refugees and what can refugees offer to college students in terms of experiential education?
Diya Abdo, Professor of English, Guilford College; Founder, Every Campus A Refuge
Sponsored by:
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