Shaping the Conversation About Refugee Education

The education of countless young Syrians was delayed and diminished by the massive migration that occurred after 2011 when millions of Syrians were displaced inside Syria and fled to neighboring countries.

But early attempts at events on the topic were held in Europe, had very low Arab participation, were dominated by Western voices, and often advocated for scholarships to bring Syrians to Western countries, a solution that could never fill the need.

Al-Fanar Media used its experience in acting on a quick, journalistic time frame to convene donors, service providers, university administrators, Syrian professors and Syrian students to discuss how young, displaced Syrians might continue their education.

Many of the lessons emphasized at those events are still relevant today: The need to integrate refugees into mainstream education in their host countries; the need to treat post-traumatic stress disorder among students, and the need for donors to support language education so refugees can adapt to the classroom language of their new country.  The events helped donors connect with NGOs working on refugee education and helped other organizations and universities find partners to work with. After our first event, every single person whom we surveyed said they had met a partner with whom they hoped to collaborate.

These events, along with Al-Fanar Media’s strong editorial coverage of higher education in conflict zones, led to Al-Fanar Media gaining a reputation as an authority on refugee education.  Our staff was a “first stop” for many donors seeking guidance on which NGOs they should visit in the Arab region. I was invited in 2016 to brief U.S. State Department officials and members of the National Security Council about the effects of the Syrian conflict on the broader Middle East.

Collaboration and financial support for these events came from SPARK, the Dutch NGO that works in fragile states, and the British Council.

Additional funding came from the Ford Foundation and the Open Society Foundation. I never had a full-time fundraiser at Al-Fanar Media and was the lead on all fundraising.