As Yousra Abdulrazig learned her freshman year, even your most stressful classes can bring life-changing opportunities.
In Abdulrazig’s case, it took her to India.
After teaching abroad in India through the College of Education and Human Sciences her freshman year, Abdulrazig, a secondary education major, brought the warmth and values she encountered to her involvement with TRIO. TRIO programs are a federally-funded outreach programs that offer academic, social, cultural and financial support for first-generation college students and under-served scholars.
“I was already struggling a little as a first-semester freshman, and one class was particularly stressful,” Abdulrazig, now a senior, said. “But I vividly remember a CEHS staff member coming in to talk about this study abroad experience.”
The experience was a CEHS eight-week study abroad opportunity to India, during which students work as classroom assistants in schools while researching the effects of inadequate resources in classrooms.
Yousra thought it was the perfect opportunity to jump into teaching, having recently chosen an elementary education major.
“Technically I was studying abroad, but I was actually getting teaching experience,” Abdulrazig, who grew up in Omaha, said. “I was able to research learning and retention in low-income schools versus those with more resources. I learned to work across language barriers and build relationships with kids, a lot of whom came from rough home lives.”
Several students’ families invited Abdulrazig into their homes, feeding her, teaching her to cook and even bringing her along to weddings.
“It reminded me of my family’s values and culture,” Abdulrazig, whose parents are Sudanese immigrants, said. “It was beautiful to see how welcoming they were and how much love they had.”
Abdulrazig is spreading these values as a Community Learning Center instructor at Brownell Elementary and as a TRIO student support staff worker, where she helps provide resources to Huskers who, like herself, come from diverse backgrounds and are first-generation college students.
Having participated in TRIO’s Upward Bound college prep program in high school, she knows how meaningful their work is for students like her.
“I didn’t have any teachers or counselors who were also Black, and being around the professional staff who were also Black women was really impactful for me,” Abdulrazig said. “I wanted to continue carry that impact on to college and be involved here at UNL.”
