“JIRAN really helped me build a deeper understanding of the bureaucracy required for resettlement and gives me perspective for the impact that welcoming and holistic resettlement teams/programs can have on refugees.”
– 2021 Student Participant
Update: In 2024, Jiran is working closely with its partners on new programming. Stay tuned for the Middlebury College and Jiran launch of a one-time summer program, First Gen Mentors. Jiran’s signature summer program will be back in 2025!
Jiran (جيران) is a summer language program that pairs intermediate and advanced language students with underserved newcomer families who speak their target language. Jiran’s past programming has focused on Arabic language learning, allowing student participants to progress in Arabic, build relationships with Arabic speakers from places they cannot study abroad (Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Sudan, etc), and experientially learn about challenges facing Arabic-speaking families new to the US.
A Jiran summer has three components:
- Social Service Learning: Each week, the program will host guest lectures that will introduce participants to different aspects of refugee resettlement and immigrant integration and inclusion processes.
- Student-Family Pairing: Each student participant works with a newcomer family in the local area who speaks the language that the student is learning. During Week 1, participants familiarize themselves with the family’s history and needs through program assignments. Over the next weeks, students will work with the family and program staff to identify local resources to better support the family.
- Colloquial language study: Student participants engage in everyday activities, build relationships with newcomer families, and offer supportive experiences to local newcomers in their target language. Participants also take daily language classes to support development of their communication skills.
In Jiran’s summer program, we provide free ESL, citizenship test preparation, and opportunities for newly arrived families to contribute to the community through co-hosting events (with/for student participants and the public).
A sample student participant schedule for in-person program is posted below. This is a general guide to provide a sense of the flow of any given week; the actual schedule will be based on this outline, but may not follow it exactly.
Sample 2022 schedule - Sheet1
For a taste of previous guest lecturers, checkout out some of our past flyers below.
