Celebrating student writers with a book launch!

The students at Oakland International High School have just published their latest comic anthology of immigration stories titled WE ARE OAKLAND INTERNATIONAL.

Come by the Oakland Public Library main branch on Thursday, February 23 from 5:30 to 7:30pm for a very special art exhibit and book launch. The event is free and open to the public.

Meet the students, staff and supporters, see digital stories created by the students, and buy your own copy of WE ARE OAKLAND INTERNATIONAL. All proceeds from the book go directly to the school to continue its mission of providing quality alternative public education to recently arrived immigrants.

An in-depth interview with the students will air on KQED's The California Report on Feb 24. The book is also for sale online at Amazon.

Volunteer of the Week - Aften Pankiewicz

Aften started volunteering at San Francisco International High School early last semester. Luckily for us, and for our students, she would not leave. On the days Aften comes in to tutor she is always hunched over a homework problem until 6 pm when Kyle (our after-school coordinator) is begging everyone to go home. 

Aften does a great job connecting with all of our students. She is open and approachable and the type of tutor that can be paired with anyone.

Beyond tutoring, Aften started an SAT prep class in response to student anxiety about the exam. Aften's commitment to the students at SFIHS has been noticed by multiple faculty members who often rave about her. Overall, Aften is a great asset to the SFIHS community and Refugee Transitions is lucky to have her.

Name: Aften
Neighborhood: Lower Haight
Job: Regional Administrative Assistant for Trimac
RT programs/events you’ve participated in: After-chool tutoring at SFIHS

What are your hobbies? Reading, drawing, calligraphy, writing, and English grammar.
If you could have dinner with anyone, past or present, who would that person be? Alice Paul. Her efforts, along with those of other members of the National Women’s Party, made some of the most momentous leaps in women’s rights for our nation.
What is your favorite book? The BFG by Roald Dahl
If you could travel anywhere, where would you go, and what would you do? If I could travel anywhere I would go to Peru and spend a few years teaching English and touring the country.
If you could instantly learn how to do anything, what would that be? I think that one of the best parts of learning is the experience. The small accomplishments, simple mistakes, and utter failures are what make us recognize the worth of that knowledge. When those experiences are taken away, the value of that knowledge diminishes, as well.
Who has been the most influential teacher in your life so far? My most influential teacher has probably been my husband. He constantly shows me the importance of taking each day one step at time and appreciating the beauty along the way.
What has been your favorite/most rewarding moment as a volunteer with RT? My most rewarding moments occur whenever one of my students learns to see past their self-doubt and fears of incompetence and embrace their capability to succeed. It makes me indescribably happy.

Volunteer of the Week - Ilse Pollet

Name: Ilse Pollet
Neighborhood: South Bay
Job: Part-time foreign language instructor (French, Italian, Dutch) + stay at home mom
RT programs/events you’ve participated in: Home-based tutoring

What are your hobbies? Cooking, reading, bike riding.
If you could have dinner with anyone, past or present, who would that person be? Eddie Vedder (lead singer of Pearl Jam), I am a big fan and admire his career and his ability to stay true to his values even when he became a superstar. He also does a lot of activism.
What is your favorite book? Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
If you could travel anywhere, where would you go, and what would you do? I would love to one day follow the Camino de Santiago de Compostela (Spain) by bike, or ride my bike across the USA.
If you could instantly learn how to do anything, what would that be? Speak Spanish and Karen
Who has been the most influential teacher in your life so far? My high school English and Latin teacher for instilling a love of languages, culture, art and history.
What has been your favorite/most rewarding moment as a volunteer with RT? My student is expecting her first child and we've been having a lot of fun preparing for labor, delivery and taking care of a baby. Imagine us doing yoga poses and breathing exercises and changing diapers on a baby doll!

Volunteer of the Week - Amy Nesbitt

Amy is a part of a small group of volunteers that dedicated their time to our home-based tutoring program.  She started working with a high school student from Burma, until she moved away.  Amy continued on as a volunteer with an adult from Bhutan, but their time together was once again shortened by another move.  Amy persisted and she was finally matched with an young mother of two from Iraq.  Amy and her friends are now awaiting a new journey of possibly helping an entire refugee family with the resettlement process and beyond.  Amy has shown great enthusiam, patience and flexibility. Here's a little more about Amy!

Name: Amy Nesbitt
Neighborhood: South Bay- Santa Clara
Job: Internal Audit 
RT programs/events you’ve participated in: Home-based tutoring

What are your hobbies? I love cooking/eating, tennis, golf, and most other sports. Thankfully my husband shares most of those enjoyable experiences with me!
If you could have dinner with anyone, past or present, who would that person be?  Jesus Christ for the person from all time and Audrey Hepburn for someone more recent. The reason for picking Jesus may be more obvious since I am a Christian, but I would also love to have dinner with Audrey Hepburn. I am inspired by her life and want to hear firsthand about her struggles through childhood, the persistence to pursue her dreams in acting, as well as all the people she met and loved during her work with UNICEF.
What is your favorite book? I can't think of one favorite book, but I enjoy reading biographies/autobiographies, and books about successful businesses. I also buy cookbooks from almost every country I visit, so I'm developing quite a collection!
If you could travel anywhere, where would you go, and what would you do? Right now, I would love to go on an eastern Mediterranean cruise that stops at least in Egypt and Israel. I have a goal to visit all the continents (except Antarctica) before I turn 30, and Africa is the last continent I haven't visited, so visiting Egypt would help me meet that goal. I am excited to marvel at the ancient pyramids, as well as dive into all the history in Egypt. In Israel, I look forward to walking in Jesus' footsteps and making stories come alive. Aside from that, I would love to take a safari in Kenya or Tanzania someday!
If you could instantly learn how to do anything, what would that be?  I would like to learn to be completely free. That may sound odd since I was born and raised in the US, but I want to be free of selfishness and human expectations. I want to be free from worrying about material desires for myself, status in our culture, what others think about me, where I should be in life, etc. I want to be free to love people as they are, and to give cheerfully and freely of my time and resources.
Who has been the most influential teacher in your life so far? My parents have been the most influential teachers in my life. They were the first to teach me unconditional love, the importance of family, relationships with people, and giving freely. I was born in California, but they made sure that I was still in touch with my Japanese culture/heritage, spoke the language. I can only hope that I am showing other people the kind of love they showed me and passing on the great lessons they taught me!
What has been your favorite/most rewarding moment as a volunteer with RT? It has been eye opening when each of my three students opened up to me about their journey to the US. I was touched that they trusted me with their stories, amazed at what they've been through, and how much joy they have in their lives despite their hardships. Spending time with them gave me a glimpse into three cultures that were new to me and the experiences that made them who they are today.

Make a Gift to Refugee Transitions

A message from Tenley Harrison, our interim executive director:

It has been another amazing year for Refugee Transitions. Our organization and our students have accomplished so much, and none of this would have been possible without the support of our volunteers, donors, and community partners. I personally have had a wonderful experience serving as interim executive director this fall and have been inspired every day by our staff and our clients.

But there is still so much more work to be done, and this holiday season, I would like to ask you to help us continue to carry out our mission by making a year end contribution to Refugee Transitions.

Here are just a few of our achievements from this past year:

- We have expanded our program offerings for adults by adding several classes, including citizenship preparation, job training, and parent education.
- Our adult clients score higher than state averages on their language testing.
- Our growing after-school program at San Francisco International High School has the highest attendance rate out of all after-school programs in the entire city of San Francisco.
- We have a near-perfect school retention rate for the over 200 youth enrolled in our home-based tutoring and mentoring program.

With your gift, we will be able to build on these achievements and work to:

- Launch two new after-school programs at middle schools in Oakland.
- Launch two new after-school programs at high schools in the South Bay.
- Expand our citizenship preparation program.
- Expand our on-site classes for adults and parents.
- Improve our refugee leadership programming for adults and youth.

I hope you will join Refugee Transitions and make a gift that will immediately further our programs for refugee and immigrant families working to succeed in their new homes and communities. 

Warm regards, 
Tenley Harrison