Faryn Heffner Capstone

For my internship last year I volunteered at HIAS PA which is a local refugee resettlement agency. I was a mentor for refugee high school students and helped with their homework and and just simply being there when they have a question or support. We also would go on educational trips such as cooking at the library, cleaning up trash at the Tacony Frankford Watershed, and learning about EMS workers and their job. I felt like I was making a difference in these students' lives and leaving a positive impact. I wanted to make my capstone about something I'm passionate about because I feel that the point of this project is to do something that is important to you. For my senior capstone I decided that my main goal was to give refugee students the opportunity to tell their story of coming to the United States and clarify any misconceptions assumed about their transition and reasons for coming to the United States. I wanted to create a video that would feature refugee students sharing their personal stories about their journey to the U.S. and the process taken to be accepted for resettlement. I also included multiple misconceptions people develop about refugees. I am super proud of my project because I gave refugee students the opportunity to share their stories. This video also shows what I'm passionate about and who I am as a person. Here is the link to the video: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tscWP4dlXnuNhsEE9kYDdMscpIItjKU7/view?usp=sharing