Concurrent Sessions
10:30 am- 12:00pm
Leadership lessons: Applying a Social Justice Lens to Community-based Nonprofit’s Sustainability
Community-based nonprofits play a crucial role in improving people’s lives. They have been instrumental in helping refugees navigate and access services, achieve economic self-sufficiency, and build community power. Despite their crucial role in helping refugees, they face persistent survival challenges as they often need direct government funding to help refugees’ resettlement and integration, and other funding sources are often competitive.
Panelists will discuss why and how they started their nonprofits, the unmet needs of the communities they serve, the services provided, what difficulties they overcame, what help they received, what policy changes are needed to ensure their ability to meet the needs, and how they currently support local refugee communities. The workshop culminates in an informative discussion and Q&A, providing actionable takeaways to start or grow your nonprofit.
Ming-Ming Tung-Edelman, Executive Director- Refugee Artisan Initiative
Rafi Rahimi, Vice President- Kabul Washington Association
Danny Rice, Program Director- Project Feast
Bilingual and Multicultural Education: Supporting the Educational Success of Refugee Students
How can educators meet refugee students’ needs and support our students’ academic and social-emotional growth? In this workshop, participants will learn about Tukwila School District students from refugee backgrounds, the program model currently used for bilingual education preparation, and program outcome measurements used to measure success in meeting the needs of refugee students. The panel will discuss areas of improvement and recommend policy changes resulting in higher graduation and decreased dropout rates for our refugee students.
MaryAnn Abdow, McKinney Vento Specialist
Pedro Chavez, MLL Teacher Support
Brett Christopher, Showalter Middle School Principal
Dr. Tenesha Fremstad, Cascade View Elementary Principal
Safia Mohamed, Community Liaison
Dr. Concie Pedroza, Tukwila SD Superintendent
Dr. Jessica Proctor, Director of PreK and Secondary Success
Refugee Resettlement: A Mental Health Perspective
Trauma, especially cumulative and persistent trauma, is a deep but invisible wound resulting from our exposure to a single or series of experiences that overwhelm our senses with consequences for health and well-being. Positive resettlement outcomes for refugees cannot be fully addressed without recognizing the traumas they have endured, affecting their psychological and physical health.
This workshop provides a mental health perspective on resettlement experiences. The implications of trauma, adjustment issues, and culture shock on successful resettlement are addressed. This is an interactive workshop, and participants are encouraged to bring their questions and concerns.
Dr. Someireh Amirfaiz, Founder and Executive Director- New Americans Alliance for Policy and Research (NAAPR)
Participatory Action Research: Lived Experiences of Refugees
Learn about Participatory Action Research and its significance in incorporating lived experiences into research methodologies. The workshop highlights the importance of refugees’ involvement in research as a way to amplify their voices and narratives. Hear about personal stories, insights gained, and the power of refugees’ lived experiences in shaping research and advocacy efforts.
Mehr Mumtaz, Doctoral Candidate, College of Arts and Sciences Department of Sociology- The Ohio State University
Ahmad Khalid Ahadi
Mohammad Haris Atef
Farhia Jama
Legislative Advocacy
This workshop covers the basics of legislative advocacy: what works and what doesn’t, the difference between lobbying and advocacy, and the power of collective advocacy and community mobilization.
Lianna Kressin, MSW, Basic Needs Campaign Lead- Statewide Poverty Action Network
Starting a Family Daycare
The Imagine Institute staff share information about starting in-home childcare businesses. Hear about licensing, resources, the challenges and successes of self-employment, and the policy changes and targeted resources that can help refugee community members start their family daycare.
Sabah Saed, Technical Assistance & Outreach Program Lead- The Imagine Institute
From Survival to Thriving: Advocacy Strategies for Refugee Well-Being
For refugees just coming to the US, navigating a new world and a complex healthcare system can be a challenge. Thus, it offers a unique opportunity for providers, community-based organizations, managed care organizations, public health entities, and other nonprofit and for-profit organizations to work with refugee communities to encourage self-advocacy and advocate for broader policy changes needed. This session is designed for any organization interested in understanding the refugee health landscape in Washington State and opportunities for refugees and organizations to be engaged. Workshop participants will learn about the Community Health Plan of Washington’s approach to advocacy. This presentation includes a group discussion.
Kush Doshi, MHA, MPA, LMT, Program Manager III, Immigrant and Refugee Health- Community Health Plan of Washington
Hawa Elias, Public Policy Analyst- Community Health Plan of Washington
Concurrent Sessions
1:45- 3:15 pm
Gun Violence in Refugee Communities: The Necessity of Community Solutions
From January through July 2024, 30% of all King County youth fatalities by firearm were from refugee backgrounds. Refugees are placed in neighborhoods where housing costs are lower, and crime rates are often high. Parents worry that their teens are being caught up in violence that is present in their neighborhoods.
The panel will discuss the impact of gun violence on children, youth, and community members and the contributing factors to gun-related violence from a community perspective. The discussion will focus on the necessity of community solutions, comprehensive intervention and prevention efforts, and advocacy in addressing gun violence and protecting our refugee children and youth.
Yohannes Bashi, Youth and Family Program Manager- Horn of Africa Services
Dehabe Hassan, Youth Program Coordinator- Horn of Africa Services
Ali Abdi
Ruth Admassu
Ansaar Ahmed
Beka Geleta
Kenna Guyassa
Hamza Hussein
Barru Jorgo
Enas Mehari
Natai Mengesha
Asanti Mesfin
Milka Moges
Qatin Osman
Feben Tessema
Kebron Tsegay
Lifting Refugee Voices in Classrooms and Communities with Storytelling, Poetry & Visual Art
This presentation showcases a sequential process developed over twenty years of honoring refugee voices with tools from poetry, storytelling, and visual arts to bring forth creative work that gives voice to profound connections to loved ones and home places. A showcase of art and poetry created by refugee, immigrant, and asylum seeker youth will demonstrate how expressive arts can bring these voices and artistic creations into wide community visibility. Hands-on examples will further understanding of how refugee youth have expressed their own personal and cultural identities and pride in their homelands. This work utilizes artistic expression to cultivate compassion in the larger community and to celebrate the distinct humanity of youth who arrive as newcomers to this country.
Merna Ann Hecht, MA- Word Travels: Bringing Refugee & Immigrant Voices to the Community
Environmental Health
Refugees are among high-risk populations for exposure to and adverse health effects from a wide range of environmental toxins, and they experience poor social determinants of health. Hear from the panelists about the latest research and how refugees can become engaged in more significant policy-based decisions that address the environmental health disparities they face.
Heather Trim, Executive Director- Zero Waste Washington
Refugees in the Health System: International Medical Graduates as Untapped Resource for Community Health and Wellness
International Medical Graduates (IMGs) face serious obstacles to practicing medicine in Washington State and throughout the nation despite nationwide shortages of medical professionals. The International Medical Graduates Academy (TIMGA) was formed by refugees and immigrants in Washington State to advocate for changes in these policies, and they now provide support to IMGs across the country. In this panel, TIMGA staff will share their journey to advocacy, provide advice for new advocates, offer strategic lessons learned in their advocacy, and discuss how they can be applied to other issues. They will also provide information about the currently available paths for IMGs in Washington, success stories from professionals using these new pathways, their future advocacy goals, and insights on licensing reform for other professions.
Hala Alyasiri, Operations Director- The International Medical Graduates Academy
Mohamed Khalif, Executive Director-The International Medical Graduates Academy
Women in Government
Panelists will reflect on their resettlement journeys and their career paths and offer practical insights for those interested in leadership positions in the public sector and how they continue to guide and support our communities. This workshop is perfect for both seasoned professionals and those exploring opportunities in governmental agencies.
Jenifer Chao, Director, Department of Neighborhoods- City of Seattle
Dr. Shukri Olow, Division Director of Youth and Family Empowerment- City of Seattle
Angel Taherazer, Community Outreach Strategist- City of SeaTac
Family Engagement and School Advocacy in Washington State
Parents know their children better than anyone else, but many times refugee parents do not have a voice in the public education system. In this workshop, you will learn how our public education system works and families’ important role in supporting their children’s development and academic progress. We will cover best practices in school-family partnerships and the power of parent involvement in school advocacy and in identifying educational concerns. The discussion will delve into the academic challenges faced by refugee students, the role of systems and institutions in contributing to inequities, and the potential of social policy to reduce these inequities. This is an interactive workshop, and we will seek recommendations from the audience regarding the “next steps” to expand educational advocacy strategies that support successful bilingual/multicultural academic preparation for refugee students.
Adie Simmons, M.Ed., Executive Director and Founder- Washington Family Engagement
Your Policies, Our Lives: Rethinking the Refugee Resettlement Program
United States’ resettlement policy provides very little financial support after arrival, denying refugees the time they need to adjust to a new culture and learn English. Instead, since the Refugee Act of 1980, the focus has been on rapid employment with the goal of achieving economic “self-sufficiency.” This employment imperative leads to low-wage jobs that inhibit English language learning and integration, often trapping people in extreme poverty.
This workshop will include a presentation of the findings from interviews with 132 refugees from nine countries about their resettlement experiences. Refugee participants will share their personal stories, and there will be time for group discussion about how these findings should inform advocacy and community mobilization to improve post-resettlement outcomes.
Nancyrose Houston, MPA, Public Policy and Advocacy Director- New Americans Alliance for Policy and Research (NAAPR)
Sayed Mohammad Faqiri