Maryland International Education Day and Panel Discussion on Refugees and Higher Education

 

On April 26, 2023, Governor Wes Moore proclaimed Maryland International Education Day. To commemorate the day, MIEC convened an expert panel to discuss refugees and Maryland higher education.

Governor Moore’s proclamation recognizes the vital importance of international education to the quality and diversity of higher education in Maryland and MIEC’s role in building “synergy and collaboration amongst higher education institutions and organizations to promote the stature of Maryland as the hub of international education.”

The panel discussion, Refugees and Maryland Higher Education: Challenges, Pathways, and Support, brought together higher education and community leaders to discuss the issues and challenges that face our refugee community as they try to access higher education, and to explore effective practices for Maryland colleges and universities to enroll and support refugee students. Panelists included Laura Wagner, director of refugee access at the President’s Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration; Betty Symington, executive director, and Daniel Jacoby, assistant director, of the Episcopal Refugee and Immigrant Center Alliance; and Rishan Habte of the office of economic empowerment at the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service.