Did you know that each student at UNBC pays $5 CAD per semester to go to WUSC/SRP?
Here is some information about WUSC/SRP, and their recent efforts in Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario.
World University Service of Canada (WUSC) is a Canadian international development non-profit organization dedicated to improving education, employment and empowerment opportunities for youth, women and refugees in more than 25 countries around the world. For over fifty years, WUSC has empowered their unique network of post-secondary institutions, private sector partners and volunteers to help build a more equitable and sustainable world for youth.
The Student Refugee Program is powered by WUSC.
The Student Refugee Program (SRP) is the only one of its kind to combine resettlement with opportunities for higher education. The program supports over 130 refugee students per year through active partnerships with over 95 Canadian campuses. SRP has empowered over 2,000 young refugees from 39 countries of origin to continue their education in safe and supportive environments in Canada since the program began.
Crucial to the program’s success is its unique youth-to-youth sponsorship model which empowers young Canadian students to play an active role in the sponsorship of refugee students. Our campus-based Local Committees raise funds and awareness for the program on their campus and in their community. They also play a critical role in offering day-to-day social and academic support to SRP students.
UNBC has sponsored more than 12 students in the last 6 years, and that is all because of the contribution of the students. Those students were from the Middle East and Africa. Some of them have graduated and started their careers, and some others have moved to other cities either for work or to complete their studies. Those students started paying back to Canada by being contributing people, working in Canadian industries, volunteering in their communities and helping as much as they can. WUSC/SRP, UNBC and other institutions of higher education know that the best investment is to invest in people, and that is why every year they bring students to Canada, help them resettle, educate them and help them to get into the work field after graduation.
Recently, as the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games end, many successful and heartwarming stories are emerging. The world saw the creation of the Refugee Olympic Team in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, sending a message of hope, solidarity, and support for the millions of refugees around the world. For the Tokyo 2020 Games, the Refugee Olympic Team consists of 29 athletes who are inspiring the world.
Three of these athletes were a part of the very first Refugee Olympic Team in 2016 and have made their second appearance for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. Rose Nathike Likonyen and James Nyang Chiengjiek competed in the 800-metre races, while Paulo Amotun Lokoro competed in the 1,500-metre race at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games. These athletes grew up and still live in the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya after they had fled conflict in South Sudan.
The three Refugee Olympic Team athletes, Rose Nathike Likonyen, Paulo Amotun Lokoro and James Nyang Chiengjiek, have started their postsecondary education last week at Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario for the 2021-2022 academic year. The International Olympic Committee and its Refugee Athlete Support Program help fund refugee athletes with the goal to qualify for the Olympic Games and to continue to support their athletic career and build their future.
In collaboration with the World University Service of Canada (WUSC) Student Refugee Program, The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), The International Olympic Committee, and Sheridan College, these three athletes will be sponsored as they resettle in Canada to continue their education. For over 40 years, WUSC’s Student Refugee Program has combined resettlement with opportunities for higher education for refugee students. This program is available for all refugee students, not just Olympians. You can check out some recent graduates who have participated in this program. Studyincanada.com
