Image of IRC team members speaking to graduating Kickstart students.
Photo: Sebastian Madrigal

The IRC’s Connect2Success (C2S) program supports out-of-school refugee youth ages 16–24 through mentorship, coaching, and one-on-one guidance to help them achieve their education and career goals. 

C2S fills gaps caused by interrupted education during resettlement and addresses the challenge of “aging out” of the traditional school system faced by many young adult refugees arriving in the U.S. with their families.

On August 1, 2026, the IRC C2S team celebrated the graduation of 46 diverse scholars from Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Sudan, and Ukraine.

Our Kickstart Pathway Scholars earned their high school diplomas through the IRC in Atlanta’s partnership with Penn Foster High School, an independently paced online curriculum. Penn Foster’s flexible model provides our clients with unique opportunities to achieve their academic goals while managing household responsibilities, working full-time, and adjusting to a new and ever-changing social, cultural, and political environment.

A Kickstart graduate holds the tassel of their graduation cap with a gold "2026" charm.
Photo: Nushrat Nur

                                                  

“To my mom, when we left the Democratic Republic of Congo, we left carrying hope. Hope for a better future. Hope that one day your daughters will have opportunities we never imagined. You sacrificed so much so that we could dream bigger. You carried burdens we didn’t always see. You prayed for us when we didn’t know what tomorrow would bring. 

Mom, this diploma has my name on it, but your fingerprints are all over it. 

Every sacrifice. Every prayer. Every tear. Every sleepless night. Thank you for never giving up on us. I love you with all my heart."                                    

-Student Speaker 

Their achievements reflect both their resilience and the strong support of their families and communities. Of the graduates in attendance, eight earned valedictorian honors with perfect 4.0 GPAs and five earned a GPA of 3.9 or higher.   

Sixteen graduates are now completing their application process to pursue bachelor’s degrees in fields including nursing, cybersecurity, and business, while others are preparing for apprenticeships and careers as HVAC technicians, mechanics, and electricians.

Three images in a row, (left to right); Kickstart student smiles at the camera while someone adjusts her graduation cap, Kickstart student speaker gives speech during graduation ceremony at podium, Kickstart student smiles at the camera while seated during graduation ceremony.
Photo: Sebastian Madrigal

Hosted at the Clarkston Resource & Wellness Hub, the celebration brought together students, families, and staff to honor this important milestone. The ceremony included speeches from IRC staff including Deputy Director, Dr. Omar Aziz, Youth Career Readiness Coach, Samiha Ross, as well as student speakers. One of the valedictorians, a young man from Afghanistan, shared these words:                                                                                        

"I want to tell you about my country.

My country has known war, hardship, and bloodshed. My family and I came to America from Afghanistan with dreams of a life where our education and our future would be safe for ourselves and for our children. In my country, girls are not allowed to study. My sisters know about this pain. 

But life in Afghanistan is also about strength. Our people face hard times, but we never stop hoping. We never stop trying. Life there is like a river in the mountains. It hits many rocks, but it always finds a way to keep moving forward. This is what my country taught me: patience, strength, and hope, even in hard times. 

My father is the reason I am here today. He always told me, "Your studies are your future." He pushed me to study. He helped me every day. He never stopped believing in me. 

To everyone graduating today with me, look at how far we have come. We did it. 

Congratulations on moving forward with the strength of the river and never letting the rocks stop you from reaching your dreams. 

Today, I am not graduating only for myself. I am graduating for my family. For my father, who gave up so much for me. For my sisters, who deserve to study just like me. Thank you all for carrying me through the river, even when the water was dark and the current was strong.”                                                                             

 - Student Speaker

                  Please join us in congratulating the Kickstart Scholars Class of 2026!

                          

Three Kickstart grads look at golden graduation balloons with the numbers "2026".
Photo: Sebastian Madrigal

The IRC in Atlanta extends a heartfelt thank-you to our generous partners at Penn Foster High School for supporting this program and helping us continue to enroll more students. We are deeply grateful for Penn Foster’s shared commitment to ensuring our clients have the opportunity to pursue their dreams.

To learn more about how to get involved or how you can support the Kickstart Program, please contact Atlanta@rescue.org.