Inspire: A Shalom Afterschool Initiative, is a direct response to the needs of refugee and immigrant youth in the Clarkston community where Shalom International Ministry is located. Many refugee and immigrant youth in Clarkston have experienced little or interrupted formal education.  As English Language Learners, they face the challenge of adjusting to middle school while also navigating a new educational system, a new language, and a new cultural context. Inspire responds to these young people’s needs, knowing that:

• without a safe, constructive place to spend their afternoons, they waste their time in front of screens or wander the streets;
• without help in understanding the language and academic content of their classes, they remain grade levels behind in school
• without positive relationships across cultural and language groups, conflict in this diverse community is rife
• without confidence, a sense of self, and a sense of belonging, they lack the hope that can spur them on to greater things