Announcement
IRC's Refugees Empowering Peers Program celebrates successes, offers new opportunities
The IRC in Sacramento’s Refugees Empowering Peers (REP) Program engaged 39 newly arrived refugee youth this Spring. Supporting social connection, cultural awareness, and college preparation, IRC Volunteer Youth Mentors help make progress toward goals.
A high school refugee mentee shared their experience from the Spring:
I am so happy that I join this program. Before I had no idea how to apply for colleges, how many credits I should get to graduate high school, and anything about cultural awareness. I learn a lot about everything that could help me with my future.
YOU can have this impact this Fall! The IRC in Sacramento is excited to be expanding this programming and is urgently recruiting for more Volunteer Youth Mentors.
A Volunteer Youth Mentor shared their experience from the Spring:
“It was humbling being able to witness the dedication of all the youth in adjusting to their new environments in the United Sates, even more so when, through many discussions with them, they all emphasized the importance of education to them and their families. All of the students had detailed plans with regards to their future occupations, and their enthusiasm for information about college scholarships, school resources (whether high school or college), and after school activities highlighted how invested they were in creating their desired opportunities.
Furthermore, the IRC staff overseeing the REP program were incredibly brilliant and hardworking in creating learning material for the students’ benefit and helping us to facilitate clear, concise, and effective communication with the students. The program quite simply could not have succeeded as well as it did without their diligence and dedication overseeing the entire process.”
The IRC designed this program to engage volunteer support because of how important it is to see diverse community members being part of welcome and integration. We value the dynamic experience volunteers bring to the discussions and the care they bring to these relationships.
We hope you’ll continue exploring below to learn about the opportunity and process to join our Volunteer Youth Mentor team!
A day in the life of a Volunteer Youth Mentor
After-school typically 4-6p PST, once a week for 10 weeks, per school
3:45 p Volunteer Mentor arrives to high school campus
4:00p REP students arrive and Volunteer Mentor supports and
leads group activities (up to 20 refugee youth)
5:00p Break into small groups to facilitate discussion of a topic and
goals with 3-5 youth
5:30p Group mentor session concludes
5:30 – 6:00p Volunteer mentors and IRC staff debrief
If you are a current student or recent graduate, check out the REP Program Internship!
Get started
Join an info session to learn more about this opportunity to have a transformative impact on newly arrived refugee youth.
Mondays August 7, 14, or 21 (repeat sessions), 4:00-4:30p PST
On Zoom- Meeting ID: 849 5461 7320
Passcode: 308483
Complete a volunteer application no later than Aug 30 to be part of our mid-September start! Earlier applications are encouraged and appreciated.
- Schedule a 30-minute interview to get to know the REP program & confirm if it feels like a mutual fit
- If it’s not the right fit, explore other ways to support!
- Submit $40 contribution to offset the cost of the background check. All volunteer opportunities are contingent on clearing the background check.
Vetting Process
Working with refugee youth is an incredibly impactful and transformative opportunity. Thank you for your interest in supporting newly arrived refugee youth explore and understand cultural awareness and diversity, communication skills, U.S. school norms and expectations, as well as higher education and career exploration.
The IRC takes the protection and safeguarding of our clients, volunteers, and staff as a top priority. Working with minors requires additional vetting beyond our standard volunteer process. Thank you for your dedication to take additional, grant-required steps to be cleared to mentor refugee youth.
In addition to clearing a background check conducted through HireRight which is standard for all ongoing volunteer opportunities, the following steps must be completed for youth programming:
- TB test. Provide IRC with any TB test result from the last 5 years. If you do not have this, IRC will pay for a TB test for you.
- Live Scan. IRC will pay for you to complete a Live Scan fingerprinting for each school district.
- Orient & train with the IRC and the Youth Team:
- IRC General Orientation
- IRC Safety & Security
- Mandated Reporter Training (required for school sites)
- Anti-Sexual Harassment Training (required for school sites)
- Program-specific training
Join the team!
Thank you for supporting refugee youth in Sacramento! We know how precious time is and are grateful for the time and expertise our volunteers contribute. Thank you!
4 refugee high school youth walk on treelined campus sidewalk together
