About Roots for Refugees

Last March, our team of five had the opportunity to visit Jordan as a part of an undergraduate course at Champlain College. We loved watching sunrises in the Wadi Rum, visiting mosques in Amman, and exploring the ancient ruins scattered across the country, but the most impactful part of our trip was visiting the Azraq Education Center.

Based in Azraq, a tiny town on the outskirts of Jordan, the center provides life changing education and services to Syrian refugee children who have been forced to flee their homes due to conflict. From the moment we stepped foot on their beautiful campus, the students flocked around us, wanting to show their state of the art classrooms and shaded play structures. We spent much longer than anticipated that day laughing with the kids and listening to the center’s staff enthusiastically describe the various programs and services they are able to provide for their community.

When we returned to Burlington, we wanted to support the centers mission. Along with other initiatives, we have started hosting a bi-annual popup dinner to raise funds to donate.

This spring will be our third popup dinner. With the help of the community we have reasied nearly $4,000 for the center and Gaza refugee aid.

Our team is comprised of five students at Champlain College in Burlington Vermont.

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Press

• In Their Own Words: What Students Found in the Jordanian Desert, and Why They’re Going Back

Other Initiatives

The Film, two of our team members, Maeve and Ronan are also working on an additional initiative to support the center: a documentary film and narrative filmmaking workshop for the students at the center. Working title, Aljudhur (roots in Arabic), the film will explore what happens when women from a small Jordanian town near the Syrian border collaborate to create a vibrant refugee education center while simultaneously trying to navigate the contours of their own lives. How can they ensure the center, which has become a hub of community development, remains sustainable in the future and balance their desire to see the center grow with their life aspirations beyond this project?
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