Panel discussion explores barriers to education for displaced people

From: Center for International Research, Education, and Development

The Spring 2026 Global Development Discussion Series kicks off on March 26 with a panel hosted in collaboration with the Center for Refugee, Migrant, and Displacement Studies (CRMDS) that will explore the intersection of gender, education, and displacement.

The discussion will examine how gender shapes educational opportunities and barriers for displaced people around the world. The event offers the Virginia Tech community an opportunity to better understand these issues and consider how institutions can meaningfully support displaced learners.

Watch the discussion via Zoom at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, March 26. Register to attend and learn more at cired.vt.edu/discussion-series.

Panelists include Brett Shadle, director of CRMDS, who will highlight the center’s work supporting refugee and migrant education in Virginia, across the United States, and globally. Deirdre Hand ’08, ’12, CRMDS community engagement specialist, will discuss the center’s partnership with Elimisha Kakuma, a college-access program she co-founded in the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya. Awel Agot Paruar, a student in Elimisha Kakuma and an incoming Virginia Tech undergraduate, will share her firsthand experience navigating educational access as a refugee woman.

The series is organized and funded by the Center for International Research, Education, and Development and is co-sponsored by Continuing and Professional Education, both part of Outreach and International Affairs.

This event is free and open to the public. If you require accommodations to participate, please email Maria Elisa Christie at least 10 days prior to the event.