Guilford is one of five colleges or universities nationally partnering with Welcome Corps, whose mission is to give private citizens and groups like ECAR a role in resettling the thousands of refugees who arrive in the United States every year.

"We're excited about our partnership," says Kyle. "Welcome Corps' mission very much aligns with the work we're doing here at Guilford and with ECAR. All of us are in the business of changing lives."

Diya Abdo is the College’s Lincoln Financial Professor in English and Creative Writing and founder of ECAR, which advocates for housing refugee families on college and university campus grounds and supporting them in their resettlement.

The flagship chapter at Guilford College, one of several ECAR campuses across the country, has hosted 86 refugees thus far, including 16 Afghan evacuees. “Being the flagship chapter, we certainly possess the expertise in helping house refugees and assist them in resettlement,” says Diya. “We’re excited about Guilford’s partnership with Welcome Corps and its potential.”

Welcome Corps hopes to assist 5,000 refugees during the first year of the program. “By tapping into the goodwill of American communities, the Welcome Corps will expand our country’s capacity to provide a warm welcome to higher numbers of refugees,” according to a Welcome Corps announcement.

The State Department has traditionally worked with nonprofit groups that specialize in refugee issues to help people from around the world when they first arrive in the country and face a dramatically different way of life. Under the Welcome Corps program, five or more Americans would be able to form a group and fill this role as well.

They would apply to privately sponsor refugees to resettle in America, and would be responsible for raising their own money to help the refugees during their first 90 days in the country. Assistance would include everything from greeting refugees at the airport, finding them a place to live to helping enroll children in school.