Employment & Education For Refugees

RefugePoint is the international leader in this work and is piloting a very aggressive plan in Nairobi. Through our unrestricted financial commitment of this great organization, we are helping them pilot this work.

In Israel, there are over 30,000 asylum-seekers from Eritrea and Darfur. There are also nearly 15,000 unfilled computer programming jobs in Israel. ARDC is piloting a program which is enrolling asylum seekers in coding bootcamps with the hypothesis that they will be able to immediately fill open tech jobs in Israel. This is turning refugees into an immediate asset to society and helping individuals sustain themselves and their families (both in Israel and abroad) it’s a huge win-win. 

We are also piloting something in Greece, which is a far more complicated context. IsraAID is working out of a community center they run in Northern Greece, and we’ve quickly come to learn that Greek language is the single biggest factor in integration. We have adjusted our program there to double-down on Greek language learning hours and to see if that directly impacts refugees’ ability to gain employment. 

In Boston, we are partnering with JVS to help any refugee gain a livable-wage job. JVS helped to place over half of all MA-based refugees into their first job, so they are uniquely positioned to help these same individuals up-skill and become self-sufficient. 

On the education front, SNHU has offered college degrees, through their community partners, for DACA students. These students are fully qualified, but would otherwise not be able to access college degrees because they are not afforded in-state tuition to their state schools. We know these young people will give exponentially more to American society and the economy than they’re receiving in scholarship. 

In Turkey, there is a different opportunity. The government has made university free for refugees, but minor expenses are barring their matriculation. For just $1,400/semester, we’re able to get Syrian refugees in Turkey into college through The Karam Foundation and give them the best possibility of becoming financial self-sufficient.