Roughly 1 billion children worldwide are out of school due to school closures related to COVID-19. Children in humanitarian settings face a double crisis as the health emergency disrupts their opportunities to learn, develop and thrive. Ensuring children can continue to learn during the pandemic, no matter their access to technology, must be central to the COVID-19 response in fragile contexts.

The past year has presented many challenges for our community, but it’s also shown us the tremendous power we have when we come together as neighbors to support one another. Read about how the IRC - with help from our partners and supporters - has helped newcomer families cope with the health, social, educational, and economic impacts of COVID-19.

The IRC in NY’s partnership with the New-York Historical Society led to a very successful IRC Immigration Opportunity Center: Citizenship Program. New-York Historical’s Education Department offers naturalization exam preparation to communities across New York City. Under their Citizenship Project, they leverage Museum and Library collections to provide inquiry-driven, object-based pedagogy to engage participants in interactive learning.  

The IRC assists refugees and SIVs in securing employment upon arrival in the U.S., in addition to supporting them as they advance their careers and move towards achieving financial goals. Through job training, resume workshops, mock interviews, vocational scholarships, Vocational English as Second Language (VESL) classes, financial education, and other services, we offer refugees the tools they need to succeed in meeting their short and long-term professional and financial goals.

Learning Hubs have provided a supportive environment for refugee students with beginners English to find one-on-one time with educators and continue to maintain progress academically during the school year.

The International Rescue Committee in Los Angeles will soon begin an unprecedented initiative to improve housing, education and employment prospects for recently resettled Syrian refugees by enhancing collaboration between the state’s 22 resettlement agencies