Celebrating Head Start’s Role in Helping Refugee Families

World Refugee Day

By Julia Marangoni, NHSA public affairs intern, with assistance from Zoie Albrecht, NHSA government affairs intern

Today, we celebrate World Refugee Day and raise awareness of the situation refugees face across the United States. Refugees are individuals who live outside their country of nationality because they are unable to return due to persecution, or a fear of persecution, due to their religion, race, nationality, or membership to a particular social group or political opinion.

Head Start has helped thousands of families adapt to living in America, providing guidance, training, and a safe learning environment for their children.

One such refugee is Orhan Brakic, who fled Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1996 because of war. Mr. Brakic has been a proud Head Start parent and staff for over 20 years. In his staff role, he has worked as a transportation coordinator managing a fleet of 70 buses for the past 12 years. Mr. Brakic came to the United States with his two young daughters and not much else. He was encouraged to check out his local Head Start program and soon enrolled one of his daughters, and a year later enrolled the other one.

“It is my wish that every family and every child that attends Head Start receive the same experiences and feelings that my family had.”

Mr. Brakic attended Head Start parenting events and trainings, and Head Start helped his family find housing, overcome financial crises, and deal with the impact of leaving their extended family in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Most importantly, Head Start helped him get a job so he could financially support his family, while providing a safe learning environment for his daughters that prepared them for successful experiences in school.

“Everything I needed I got from Head Start in my first year with the program. I completed parent training and got a commercial drivers license and got hired by Head Start which really meant a lot. It gave my family and me a boost and I always say: my girls got a real head start in life toward a successful future.”

Today, both of Mr. Brakic’s daughters are college graduates, and his youngest just bought a house. Looking back on when Mr. Brakic arrived in the United States, he did not know where he would be or that his daughters would be so successful.

Now, in his role as Head Start staff, Mr. Brakic makes sure his Head Start program continues to take care of other families the way it took care of him. He believes the way he was supported is how every child and vulnerable family should be treated, and he wants to continue providing the services he benefited from to every family in need. “It is my wish that every family and every child that attends Head Start receive the same experiences and feelings that my family had.”

Mr. Brakic credits the constant support his family got from Head Start with their success as new Americans!