Strengthening Families Program

The youngest of refugee children 0-5 are the focus of RFS’ Strengthening Families program, which addresses early childhood learning and parent education. Because these children come from refugee families, their parents often speak very limited English and are often not literate – even in their native languages. Many refugee cultures do not encourage parents to read, tell stories, or otherwise play with their children in ways that support cognitive development and skill acquisition. Often parents are working low wage jobs around the clock because they are determined to provide for the many children in their large families, but this leaves little opportunity for child development. Too often, by the time refugee children in metro-Atlanta enter first grade, they are already lagging behind their American counterparts and face an uphill battle to be competitive and successful. 

Parenting

RFS certified Parent Educators work with refugee parents and their children ages 0-5 to teach parents to prevent child abuse and neglect in the refugee and immigrant community and to promote early childhood education and school readiness.  Personalized home visits and group learning sessions teach refugee parents how to be their child’s first teacher and helps them find resources to promote early learning and a successful transition into Kindergarten. 

Family Literacy

This program matches native English-speaking volunteers with refugee families in an effort to help them develop much needed English language, communication, and cultural skills.  The experience is enriching for all family members, as it helps parents develop the language abilities necesary to find quality employment and achieve personal education goals and equips them with the skills and knowledge necessary to become active participants in their children’s education.

Pre-K

This August, RFS launched the first Pre-K in Georgia’s first pre-K program that is culturally and linguistically designed to serve the multi-ethnic refugee population. The children are from eight countries, including Burundi, Congo, Somalia, Honduras, Vietnam and Burma. One child, who is originally from Ethiopia, just arrived in the country three weeks ago from a refugee camp where she has lived since her birth.