Fremont Unified Prepares For Influx Of Afghan Refugees

FREMONT, CA — In California, home to the largest number of Afghan refugees in the country, school officials are preparing for an influx of refugee students who fled Afghanistan with their families after the Taliban seized power in the country last month.

Schools are especially busy in Sacramento and Fremont, two of the largest Afghan communities in the state. Over 40 percent of the nation's Afghan refugees have resettled in the Sacramento region in recent years, according to Jessie Tientcheu, chief executive officer of Opening Doors, a refugee resettlement agency based in Sacramento.

California school districts with Afghan student populations are offering wrap-around services for refugee families, including dedicated staff to enroll students in school, language classes for parents and students, and translators to help explain schoolwork or make medical appointments. Districts also refer refugee families to community resources that provide food, housing and medical care, among other services.

Once they come to an American school, the Afghan refugee students have to navigate everything from American cultural norms, which include wearing gym shorts and T-shirts in physical education classes, to using western toilets.

Fremont Unified School District staff have been working overtime to prepare for the new students. After school staff heard the news of the fall of the Afghan government, they immediately met to evaluate the services the district currently has for refugee students and to determine what types of services need to be added, said Christie Rocha, director of Federal and State Programs at the district.

Fremont has had a large Afghan population that goes back several generations, so an influx of refugees who want to move near family is expected, although officials at Fremont Unified aren't certain how many will enroll.

The district offers a support group for newcomers, which provides them with language and academic support, as well as a curriculum to help them understand the norms in the United States. Every new arrival is given a picture dictionary in their primary language to help them learn English, as well as general school information and contact information for both their teacher and principal, Rocha said.

Fremont Unified has two social workers that help connect refugee families with food, housing and mental health services, among other things. A staff member who speaks Farsi acts as the liaison between the district and families. Rocha would like to be able to hire more translators who speak either Pashtu or Dari, which also is called Farsi.

"We will welcome them with open arms," Rocha said. "If they have any social-emotional, housing or basic necessity needs, we will connect them to the right resources."

By Diana Lambert, EdSource — Copyright © 2021 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Bay City News is a 24/7 news service covering the greater Bay Area.