This week, October 5-9, is National Tutoring Week, and we're highlighting the crucial academic and social-emotional support that tutors at the IRC in Seattle, Washington, provide to refugee and immigrant youth across the city. Thanks to these staff and volunteers, the IRC is able to expand its reach each year and better support, encourage, and teach children of all ages. These tutors are the welcoming faces, homework helpers, and support systems that give students the confidence and skills they need to navigate a new school system and home.

 

Last fiscal year, the IRC's tutoring programs engaged 175 volunteer tutors who supported a total of 1,642 students across the nation. By offering one-on-one, culturally relevant, linguistically appropriate, and trauma-informed tutoring sessions, students are receiving the tailored services they deserve. 

 

Richard has been tutoring with the IRC in Seattle since 2022. After retiring in 2020, he was looking for volunteer opportunities when he came across the IRC’s tutoring program. “The opportunity to work with children and people adjusting to a new culture was very appealing to me,” he shares. “I have found the opportunity to be very rewarding.” 

 

Judy is another volunteer in Seattle making this program possible. She adds, “If you’re considering whether to tutor or not, I’d advise, go for it! You’ll enjoy your students as you get to know them, and they’ll enjoy you...and you’ll love watching their progress.” 

 

Over the past year, staff and volunteers at the IRC in Seattle haven’t just tutored students—they've also helped shape new, publicly available national resources on how to better support forcibly displaced youth. That work is now available as a free, self-paced e-course on Kaya, built to equip volunteer tutors with the knowledge and skills to deliver high-impact tutoring sessions to forcibly displaced children and youth.

 

One tutor who completed the training said it reshaped how they thought about tutoring altogether, realizing that supporting displaced youth is about far more than explaining a concept, and that building rapport is essential. Another tutor described “starting with general tutoring instincts but little knowledge of how to adapt to a student’s English proficiency level”. The training gave them concrete tools—vocabulary tiers, proficiency levels, and comprehension checks. 

 

It’s this kind of continuous learning that makes the program’s impact possible. 

 

Thank you, tutors

 

On behalf of the IRC in Seattle, we’d like to thank all of our tutors for showing up for our students. In a time when so many families face uncertainty, our community of tutors have displayed consistency and a deep commitment to caring for students. Thank you—we appreciate you and couldn’t do this without you!

 

Want to get involved?

 

To learn more about or be a part of our tutoring program, please reach out to Elena.Ermizina@rescue.org.