Category: Stories

Resettling one’s family in an unfamiliar country is not an easy feat. Having survived violence and persecution in their countries of origin, refugees face a plethora of new challenges when resettling in the United States—but their commitment to paving paths of success for their children is unwavering. Spokane County experienced an influx of refugee families between 2021 and 2023. Spokane Public Schools (SPS) was suddenly faced with the challenge of addressing the complex and unique needs of the large number of refugee students in the district. But there was hope in a new partnership with the International Rescue Committee (IRC)—an … [ ]

On the morning of March 14, 2025, the School’s Out Washington (SOWA) training room buzzed with a deep sense of community and the hum of simultaneous conversations as representatives from nearly all 55 of SOWA’s Best Starts for Kids grantee agencies came together for their second annual Best Starts for Kids Learning Community Meeting (LCM). LCMs are an opportunity for members of a Quality Cohort—a group of youth program providers who come together to engage in a continuous improvement process—to strengthen their programs and youth program quality work through peer learning. After setting the tone for the event with an … [ ]