Oklahoma State University joins ECAR-Every Campus A Refuge to support refugee resettlement efforts
January 6, 2023
Contact: Dr. Randy Kluver, Associate Provost and Dean
Oklahoma State University has recently joined ECAR-Every Campus A Refuge, a network which supports universities and colleges that are engaged in refugee resettlement processes in their communities, and formed a campus advisory committee to provide oversight and input into the university’s ongoing efforts around refugee resettlement. The partnership arose in the wake of OSU’s cooperation with Catholic Charities of Eastern Oklahoma effort to resettle Afghan refugees in the spring of 2022.
“ECAR was an invaluable partner to us in helping to understand best practices as we sought to mobilize the university faculty, staff and students to assist in this effort,” said Randy Kluver, Associate Provost and Dean of OSU Global. “They offered resources, guidance, and encouragement as we were doing something that OSU had not done before. We look forward to continuing the partnership with them as we extend the impact of this effort into our curriculum, faculty research, and community outreach.”
Recently, the university unveiled a new strategic plan, which prioritized efforts to become one of the nation’s preeminent land-grant universities, marked by service to the state and community. The Afghan resettlement initiative benefited both the Afghans who were coming to Stillwater, but also provided an important new resettlement location for Oklahoma’s Department of Human Services. OSU was instrumental in settling approximately 70 Afghans, providing temporary housing, English language programming, and other resettlement services through the English Language and Intercultural Center.
“ECAR is honored to count Oklahoma State University as a member of its community of colleges and universities hosting refugees and supporting them in their resettlement and integration, all while providing a transformative educational experience to their students,” said Diya Abdo, Director of ECAR and Lincoln Financial Professor of English at Guilford College. “OSU’s work in this space is remarkable – they stand as a model to others who ask ‘what does our community need’ and answer the call with passion, commitment, and profound impact.”
OSU has formed a faculty advisory committee, comprised of faculty from across the university, to provide guidance to the local ECAR chapter. The members of that committee are:
- Michael Amory, Department of English, College of Arts and Sciences
- Emily Boersma, English Language and Intercultural Center, OSU Global
- Denni Blum, College of Education and Human Development
- Ron Cox, Human Development and Family Science, College of Education and Human Development
- Deana Hildebrand, Nutritional Sciences, College of Education and Human Development
- Camelia Knapp, Boone Pickens School of Geology, College of Arts and Sciences
- Stephanie Link, Department of English, College of Arts and Sciences
- Amy Malek, School of Global Studies, OSU Global
- Tyson Ochsner, Plant and Soil Sciences, Ferguson College of Agriculture
- Carlos Valiente, Human Development and Family Science, College of Education and Human Development
About ECAR: ECAR is a higher-education initiative founded in September 2015 at Guilford College. Its
mission is to make every U.S. college and university a Resettlement Campus which partners
with a local refugee resettlement agency to host refugees on campus grounds and supports
their successful integration.
About OSU Global: OSU Global is the central global engagement office of Oklahoma State
University and provides services to the entire campus community in global efforts.
The English Language and Intercultural Center provides intensive English instruction,
cultural orientation, and integration programs for the OSU and Stillwater communities.
