Eyes on the PRYSE: Social Integration for Refugee and Immigrant Youth

I am Patoimbasba Nikiema, a 4th-year Ph.D. student of French and Francophone Studies in the Department of French and Italian at the University of Pittsburgh. My studies mainly focus on Francophone postcolonial, Afropean, and Caribbean literatures and cultures. I am also a student of Gender, Sexuality, and Women Studies with interest in feminist studies, transnational feminism, masculinity, and intersexuality.

I developed a keen interest in the Humanities Engage Summer Immersive program because of the meaningful pathway it promised to provide between my studies and what I call the practical and tangible social life. Indeed, this program has allowed me to transplant one of the important points of my research – the integration, assimilation, and belonging of African minorities – into the lives of dozens of middle and high school immigrants living in Pittsburgh. It has provided an opportunity for a different experience that deconstructs my former convictions that a Ph.D. student should only be focused on research and teaching.

For my summer immersive fellowship, I volunteer with ARYSE (Alliance for Refugee Youth Support and Education). ARYSE is an organization that is entirely dedicated to facilitating immigrant youth’s integration into American society. It targets refugee and immigrant youth living in Allegheny County and assists them throughout the school year. More specifically, I volunteer in the PRYSE Academy (Pittsburgh Refugee Youth Summer Enrichment), a summer camp that helps with the social integration of refugee and immigrant middle and high schoolers. Most of the activities, developed by Counsellors and Counsellors in Training (CITs), are predicated on fostering a sense of belonging to the immediate Pittsburgh community and the larger American society. Hence, PRYSE works in promoting a multicultural environment and in alleviating the cultural shock of hundreds of refugee youths.

Furthermore, PRYSE provides English literacy classes since most of the refugee youth are not native speakers of English. An essential impact of PRYSE is the development of talents and the early projection into the future for immigrant and refugee youth. Indeed, PRYSE offers art, football, photography, dyeing, and radio broadcasting classes. By doing so, ARYSE not only helps them demonstrate an interest in their life progression, but also helps them develop a more socially centered vision of their adult role. This summer, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all the activities are conducted online via Zoom.

As I mentioned above, my project evolves around the exilic experience in Western countries while centering on integration, assimilation, and belonging. It holds that the development of integration and the sense of belonging capital are needed for a successful experience and rejects the idea of assimilation, which strips immigrants and refugees from their previous cultural heritage. As a Counsellor and a Counsellor Support (I have both positions in PRYSE), I mainly see that integration and belonging as notions are implemented in the preparation of activities. With two other counselors, we prepare classes that focus on self-awareness, the discovery of one’s capacities, and the use of art and activism (artivism as explained by Thea Matthews) to talk about compelling community or social problems. ARYSE is a well-structured organization that essentially puts refugee and immigrant youth at the center of all the reflections and activities they have. Consequently, my presence as someone working on detachment/attachment consolidates the already strong mission they have with students. The synergy has been enriching both for the organization and me.

Patoimbasba Nikiema
French 
July 28, 2020
 

For my reflections post-immersive, please see Reimagining the Experiences of Refugees and Immigrants.

Learn about all the Summer 2020 Immersive Fellows and their experiences with their host organizations.