In October, Oakdale Neighbors received a grant of $75,000 over three years to support its Learning Café, which provides an inclusive environment for K-12 refugee youth to learn, be mentored, build essential academic skills, and develop as cultural navigators and future community leaders. The Learning Café offers 1:1 drop-in tutoring, a Learner 2 Leaders college prep program, in-school mentoring, and robotics, chess, and business programming to engage students in their interests and help them succeed in school.

The southeast side of Grand Rapids has become home to one of the largest resettlement communities for Central African refugees, and Oakdale Neighbors’ Learning Café provides critical academic and cultural support to empower and support young people as they make Grand Rapids their new home and become navigators for their families. We’re honored to partner with Oakdale Neighbors to welcome and support refugee families into our community.