Who Do We Serve
Refugee youth, affected by war and displacement, have special needs and concerns as they adjust to life in the United States. We serve refugee youth through our Youth Futures program, which offers vocational and educational counseling, an afterschool program, and a summer internship and summercamp curriculum.
IRC-Atlanta’s Youth Futures program focuses on youth aged 14 – 25. The program provides needed services and a supportive environment for their academic, social, and long-term occupational integration in the community.
Youth Futures Program
IRC’s Youth Services offers an after-school program for youth in school running throughout the academic year. The program provides academic support, including homework assistance, and academic counseling, as well as a variety of classes on personal finance, culture, and other issues important to refugee youth.
The Youth Summer Camp meets during the summer break, and provides a variety of programs for refugee youth, including field trips and educational seminars.
The Youth Futures program at the IRC focuses on three key areas of assistance for refugee youth: vocational, educational, and personal development.
We provide the following services to help young men and women succeed in the workplace, the classroom, and in life:
-Individual attention and goal-setting. Educational and vocational counseling sessions are one-on-one, and create individual plans based on the client’s particular situation and interests.
-Vocational programs, including apprenticeships and job fairs. One of the best ways to learn is by doing, so youth are directed to internship opportunities and job programs to get real-life experience in the workplace as well as a ‘foot in the door’ for future employment.
-Academic assistance. Many refugee youth clients need academic support, either in their high school coursework or in preparation for college or technical school. The IRC provides assistance to any client who needs it, including SAT classes for college preparation, study skills seminars, and referrals to basic English classes for new arrivals.
-Financial literacy courses. The American financial system can be confusing, especially for refugee youth. An understanding of how money works, and how you can make it work for you is essential knowledge. Through targeted financial literacy sessions the IRC helps refugee youth understand the basics of responsible finance and how money can work for them.
-Financial Aid assistance.
-Application assistance for college and technical school.
-Parent partnerships. We seek to reach out to parents and educate them about the opportunities their children have in the American system.
Why Join Youth Futures
Because we offer services to every youth client based on their needs, their interests, and their capabilities. We want to help youth fulfill their potential and will help them plan each step of their path to success on an individual basis.
Working In Partnership
The IRC is uniquely positioned to offer a broad and flexible range of services to refugee youth of high school age, as well as providing accurate referral to other agencies’ programs. We actively partner with Georgia Perimeter College, the host of our after school program and also with The Mountain, a summer camp attended by select members of our program who are sponsored by the Rotary Club.
