As a Mexican-American married to a French-Moroccan, the topic of immigration has always been of personal interest to Anna Seldner, a Spanish instructor at University High School. With that interest in mind, Seldner and Shannon Swann, the Director of International Programs at University High School, coordinated a Year of Service group that focused on studying the immigrant and the related language issues in the United States.
As the semester progressed, the focus of the Year of Service group narrowed slightly when Governor Mike Pence attempted to block Syrian refugee resettlement in Indiana. Pence claimed to be worried about security and safety in Indiana after the terrorist attacks in Paris, and he wanted to reevaluate the screening process of Syrian refugees to ensure safety in the state. Because Syrian immigration became an issue in the news, the group refocused to educate themselves on the current topics.
Exodus Refugee Immigration, a nonprofit organization that works with refugees in Indianapolis, was directly affected by Pence’s attempt to block Syrian refugee resettlement in Indiana. According to their website, Exodus Refugee Immigration “works to arrange housing, food and clothing, case management, as well as education, employment and health services for individuals and families starting out in their new lives.”
Visiting Exodus Refugee Immigration
The group poses for a picture at Exodus Refugee Immigration on Community Day.
During the spring Community Day, the Year of Service group took a trip to Exodus Refugee Immigration so that they could further their education on the issue. While there, the group volunteered to sort previously donated clothing that would be provided to the refugee families arriving in Indianapolis. The students got a lot out of their visit to Exodus Refugee Immigration aside from learning what they can do to help and providing volunteer work.
“They gave us a quick presentation on what they do and how immigrants and refugees get into the country, which is a process that I didn’t understand as much until after that,” said Michaela McKasson, a junior at University High School.
Although there were faculty coordinators, this group was completely student-driven. The faculty coordinators guided the students to stay on task, and for the most part the students did a great job. Seldner says that through this Year of Service group opportunity she has “learned that the kids can really step up and handle responsibility quite maturely.”
Reaching Out and Building Connections
Being a part of the Year of Service group has inspired McKasson to help out Exodus Refugee Immigration over the summer.
“They have a teen program in which refugee teens are able to hang out with high schoolers to help them acclimate,” said McKasson. She also wants to lead the Year of Service group next year.
This year, senior Christina Duffield took charge of the group on several occasions, since Level 200 Year of Service groups are primarily student-led. During Community Meetings, she and other members of the group dedicated much of their time connecting with organizations they could potentially partner with, such as Darfur Women Network. Some organizations took a bit longer to get back to them, but they were able to build connections for the Year of Service group to follow up with again next year.
The group takes a quick break from their service and enjoy a meal filled with discussion.
“We ran a supply drive for Exodus around January, and then we contacted a mosque and set up a bunch of connections for next year if this group still exists, which I think it will, which is a good thing because these networks will still be in place,” said Duffield.
Other students involved with this group were Thomas Burgess, Che-yuan Chang, Jared Dalton, Julia Miller, Luke Hook, Abbey MacPherson-Stolen, and Saab Sahi. They all worked together, bringing interesting discussions to the table. The seven students all visited Exodus Refugee Immigration together.
“Exodus suggested that next year, if we wanted, we could actually help them set up an apartment because they usually buy all of the stuff they will need for an apartment and have a weekend where they get volunteers to help set up the apartment before the refugee begins to live there,” said Duffield.
Seldner said she is excited about potentially “partnering with Exodus once more and perhaps doing something a bit more substantial, like helping set up an apartment for an immigrant family.”
About Year of Service
University High School’s Year of Service is a school-wide program intended to teach students about authentic, sustainable, long-term service that makes a significant impact. There are three levels of participation for students:
- Level 100 is for younger students and focuses on direct service
- Level 200 is for upperclassmen and focuses on a community issue
- Level 300 is a service leadership track and includes participation in the Jefferson Foundation Awards Students in Action program