A little over a year ago, 18-year old HomeStep youth, Aamina, left her homeland of Ethiopia to come to America. She and her family, the recipients of green cards through the Diversity Immigrant Visa program, first settled into the cramped quarters of a family friend, before being accepted into HomeStep and a house of their own, nine months later.
Despite the hardship and uncertainty of starting over in a new country, one of the first things Aamina noticed about her new life in America was the abundance of opportunities. “I like doing things,” she explains in nearly seamless English. “Here you have more opportunities and you get to choose what you want to do. For me, if there’s something to do, I want to do it.”
This is something of an understatement.
After starting school with only a rudimentary knowledge of English, Aamina’s high grades and impressive work ethic have made her a candidate for the Running Start program. “The teachers over here are so nice. They’re always smiling and they want to talk to you about your life and what’s going in your life and how you are doing,” she says. Enamored with school, Aamina was also quick to get involved with numerous clubs and afterschool activities. She joined Big Brothers & Big Sisters and took part in babysitting workshops where she learned how to perform CPR. When she realized that the school didn’t have a drama program, she took matters into her own hands and started a Drama Club so she could share her interest in acting with fellow students.
“Everything offered at my school, I have been in,” she laughs.
At home, Aamina divides her time between her own homework and helping her mother learn English. “We tell her, ‘You have to learn English in this country,” she says, describing a few of the things she’s learned in her own English Language Learner classes. “She’s getting better and I help her by bringing home tools from school. When I get home, we only speak in English and I force her to read English books. The hardest part is not speaking your own language at home. But doing that will cut you off from really learning English.”
Aamina credits HomeStep with helping her navigate her education and coordinate the details of everyday life – things her mother, who still needs her daughter’s help translating applications and reading the mail, is unable assist with. “I really like HomeStep because they help me with everything. Karen, my case worker, talks to my teachers and always helps with the things we need,” she says. With school over for the summer, Aamina has no plans to slow down. With the help of HomeStep, she has secured a place at Camp Colman, and is looking forward to attending summer camp for the first time. She is also hoping to secure volunteer work with the YMCA or Boys & Girls Club, in order to gain experience working with children, something she hopes to pursue as a career after college.
“No one believes that I’ve only been here for one year,” she says, the ease at which she’s adjusted to her new life evident in her easy smile and gleaming enthusiasm.
Despite the hardship and uncertainty of starting over in a new country, one of the first things Aamina noticed about her new life in America was the abundance of opportunities. “I like doing things,” she explains in nearly seamless English. “Here you have more opportunities and you get to choose what you want to do. For me, if there’s something to do, I want to do it.”
This is something of an understatement.
After starting school with only a rudimentary knowledge of English, Aamina’s high grades and impressive work ethic have made her a candidate for the Running Start program. “The teachers over here are so nice. They’re always smiling and they want to talk to you about your life and what’s going in your life and how you are doing,” she says. Enamored with school, Aamina was also quick to get involved with numerous clubs and afterschool activities. She joined Big Brothers & Big Sisters and took part in babysitting workshops where she learned how to perform CPR. When she realized that the school didn’t have a drama program, she took matters into her own hands and started a Drama Club so she could share her interest in acting with fellow students.
“Everything offered at my school, I have been in,” she laughs.
At home, Aamina divides her time between her own homework and helping her mother learn English. “We tell her, ‘You have to learn English in this country,” she says, describing a few of the things she’s learned in her own English Language Learner classes. “She’s getting better and I help her by bringing home tools from school. When I get home, we only speak in English and I force her to read English books. The hardest part is not speaking your own language at home. But doing that will cut you off from really learning English.”
Aamina credits HomeStep with helping her navigate her education and coordinate the details of everyday life – things her mother, who still needs her daughter’s help translating applications and reading the mail, is unable assist with. “I really like HomeStep because they help me with everything. Karen, my case worker, talks to my teachers and always helps with the things we need,” she says. With school over for the summer, Aamina has no plans to slow down. With the help of HomeStep, she has secured a place at Camp Colman, and is looking forward to attending summer camp for the first time. She is also hoping to secure volunteer work with the YMCA or Boys & Girls Club, in order to gain experience working with children, something she hopes to pursue as a career after college.
“No one believes that I’ve only been here for one year,” she says, the ease at which she’s adjusted to her new life evident in her easy smile and gleaming enthusiasm.
Going to college and finding work was very important to me. My case manager encouraged
and supported me in many ways and now I have succeeded.
— Linda, Former HomeStep Client
— Linda, Former HomeStep Client