• Social Innovation Fellowship
Sidney
Scott

Award Year 

2011
Brown Refugee Youth Tutoring and Enrichment (BRYTE)

Brown Refugee Youth Tutoring and Enrichment (BRYTE) is a student-run organization that supports recently resettled refugees in Providence through an academic tutoring and mentoring program.  By helping students with language acquisition at this time of transition, we seek to encourage refugees to become engaged and active in their communities. Through collaboration with the International Institute of Rhode Island and (IIRI), the Swearer Center, Brown students volunteering with BRYTE commit to spending three hours each week working one-on-one with their students in the students’ homes, which allows the tutors to form incredibly strong relationships with these families.  As a five-year-old program that has grown exponentially in recent years, we are constantly exploring how we can deepen BRYTE's impact.  This summer, I will work to enhance our continuity within each tutee's educational experience by increasing BRYTE's connections with the Providence Public School District and the tutees' schools.  I will also work in collaboration with DIIRI to collect information about the public school system for refugee parents.

 students.brown.edu/refugee-youth-tutoring-enrichment/home

Personal Statement

I joined BRYTE freshman year, not really knowing what to expect. Throughout the past couple of years, it has become the defining element of my Brown experience.  I tutor a six-year-old girl from Eritrea, and I have loved watching her acquire English so quickly, with a constant drive to learn more.  Getting to know the entire family has been an incredible learning experience for me, and I feel honored that I have been welcomed into their home. Through watching the kids struggle in school, I have realized how important it is to connect BRYTE's work to the learning happening during the school day.  I am excited to be able to work on this connection this summer through the Starr Fellowship.