Our Students
HOME MENTORING: Up Close
Our students come from all over the globe and speak over 15 different languages combined. Many of our refugee families have crossed many borders: fleeing their country of origin as a teenager, starting a family of their own in the refugee camps of a neighboring country, and finding resettlement in a place called Cleveland, Ohio a decade or more after leaving home. Many of the children we work with have never seen their parents' homeland, though their Cleveland homes are alive with the sounds and smells of another place. Our students are eager to understand their English speaking peers, to experience success at school, to make friends, and to simply fit in. Their journey forward starts here in Cleveland.
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We work with students from grades kindergarten through high school. Every year we enroll new families to the program, and pair all school aged children within the family with their own mentor. Refugee families who previously had little contact with their community beyond work and school now have mentors coming and going from the home on different days of the week to meet with their mentee, while providing opportunities to explore resources like the local library, Cleveland’s Metroparks, or even Playhouse Square.
Our Mentors
Our current mentor base consists of business managers, chemists, school teachers, nurses, bartenders, retirees, college students, and rocket scientists. All share a commitment to making a difference in the life of a young person by giving a piece of their time every week to build a connection that transcends boundaries of age, language, and culture.
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Volunteers undergo screening and receive training and support from Refugee Response staff before and throughout their mentoring assignment. Mentors have the opportunity to connect with one another at various special events and socials hosted by The Refugee Response over the course of the year. Mentors serving children in the same family stay in close contact and coordinate special outings and cultural events for their refugee family as a group. As a home mentor, you will join a group of fearlessly dedicated volunteers working to make Cleveland a better place for all.
Mentor Perspectives
Hear from Michael as he shares some highlights and challenges of his mentoring experience with 11 year old student Daniel from the Congo.
Read their story here.
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Mentor Brittany offers reflections on her experience mentoring 17 year old Marie from Burundi. Read their story here.
Raissa and Christine
Witness the story of Raissa, a high school student from the Congo, and how she takes on new cultural experiences with the support of her mentor in this two-part feature by the Plain Dealer.
The Education Staff
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Naila Paul is the Director of Education at The Refugee Response. Prior to this she worked as a private language instructor of English and Spanish to families and visiting businessprofessionals from around the globe with IOR Global Services, offering in-home, office-based, and virtual instruction. She entered the world of refugee education in 2013 as an ESL instructor to adults at the Alliance for Multicultural Community Services in Houston, Texas, while serving as a mentor to a refugee family. Throughout her studies, she worked and participated in a number of language immersion programs across the U.S. Naila is a graduate of Oberlin College, where she served as Teaching Assistant for the Arabic Department and received her TESOL training.
Naila Paul
Naila@RefugeeResponse.org
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Naila Paul is the Director of Education at The Refugee Response. Prior to this she worked as a private language instructor of English and Spanish to families and visiting businessprofessionals from around the globe with IOR Global Services, offering in-home, office-based, and virtual instruction. She entered the world of refugee education in 2013 as an ESL instructor to adults at the Alliance for Multicultural Community Services in Houston, Texas, while serving as a mentor to a refugee family. Throughout her studies, she worked and participated in a number of language immersion programs across the U.S. Naila is a graduate of Oberlin College, where she served as Teaching Assistant for the Arabic Department and received her TESOL training.
