Join Our Alliance Work!

The CC Refugee Alliance is open to students, staff, and faculty (as well as recent alums!), and you may join any time. Our work and efforts align with the "Immigrant & Refugee Justice" Coalition (one of ten issue coalitions) at the Collaborative for Community Engagement (CCE).

In order to join us and receive updates on meetings and involvement opportunities, please sign up for the Immigrant & Refugee Justice Outlook Group. The email group is our primary way of communicating and connecting folks with the needs of our community partners working with immigrants and refugees in Colorado Springs, going forward!

On Facebook, please follow the CC Refugee Alliance page for information and events/trainings as well, or on Instagram @cc_refugeealliance.

We look forward to continuing to support our refugee and immigrant neighbors in this upcoming academic year.

Opportunities with Lutheran Family Services' Office of Refugee Resettlement:

1. There is a need right now for individuals to work to offer one-on-one to support refugee employment searches (finding jobs, helping clients to prepare for interviews, etc) in this difficult time where unemployment is high. Virtual assistance is possible. No previous experience is necessary, we will offer support and training.
2. Similarly, we are also working to create one-on-one virtual pairings for overall mentoring and accompaniment to a local refugee, either new arrivals or those who may have been here for a while, to help with integration into new home culture and American systems --like housing or education or bureaucracy like the DMV. Again, we would provide guidance and support even if volunteers feel they may not be super knowledgeable in this area. We are looking for volunteers who are able to help navigate systems because of their English level.
3. There are potential needs for virtual academic subject tutoring with a refugee high-school or college student, one-on-one.
4. If you were already doing ESL tutoring and were paired with a client last year or this summer, those relationships can continue, and we will offer support and any training needed! No new ESL pairings for the time being, given the constraints of the virtual setting for beginning an ESL tutoring relationship.

We also look forward to working closely with the Immigrant & Refugee Justice Coalition on more projects this year. Please join the email list above to be kept informed!

Previous Update: Watch the Films Online
from our first CC Refugee Film Festival

The CC Refugee Alliance & CC Films for Social Justice held our first Refugee Film Fest & Story Sharing event on Sunday, December 3, 2017.
If you missed it, all four of the excellent short films we screened are available to watch online for free:

• Wrestling Za'atari (12 minutes)
• The Island of All Together (22 minutes)
• Then I Came By Boat (10 minutes)
• Welcome to Canada (20 minutes)