proj, man...

So project work is underway and things are beginning to shape up quite differently, but better, than I’d originally imagined.  The exact topic that I have decided on is a look at is the educational opportunities of Sudanese refugees in Mississippi. 

 These are the questions that I want to frame my investigation:

These are the facts/statistics I would like to see about Sudanese students in MS:
-High school graduation rates
-Number (or percentage) who go on to college
        -Number in 4-year university as opposed to community college
-Number employed (in or after college)
        -What fields entered post-graduation
-Number who have left MS

NOW, the more difficult questions to answer...
-What are the outside influences that contribute to the success of these students?
-What does the support system look like? home life?
-Where does the majority of financing come from and who determines where it goes?
-What sort of support system is in place to ensure success and prevent failure?
-Is there any sort of counseling in place where refugees can work through the events of their pasts?
-BASICALLY, how have those who have succeeded been able to do so (in light of the overwhelming social and cultural barriers…)

Dr. Miller at Millsaps College has been helpful in answering the statistical questions and in pointing me toward other people who have played integral roles in the resettlement of originally 60 Sudanese in MS.  Kenneth Townsend has also helped me a lot with narrowing this subject down to a feasible project. 

For now I will be contacting people from the Catholic Charities in Jackson who sponsored the refugee resettlement to MS and also someone from the Episcopal Church that has also been instrumental in the resettlement process…

It’s alllll gooooddd……