As fourth and fifth graders were completing a unit on crossing borders, the IRIS education and advocacy coordinator connected the classes with Gladys Mwilelo, a refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo, as a way to deepen their learning about why people choose—or are forced—to leave their countries of origin.
In January 2018, Mwilelo told her story of immigrating to the United States after spending 13 years in Burundi. She talked about her life, the challenges great and small, and affirmed the power of hope and hard work. She answered student questions with warmth, humor, and detail.
Inspired by Mwilelo’s story, the students decided to create two picture books (one for each class) about her journey. To prepare, the students studied Jacob Lawrence’s The Migration Series—60 panels of paintings and captions portraying the flight of more than a million African Americans from the rural South to the industrial North after World War I began—for a model of how to approach their books. The students (20 per class) worked together to depict subjects, themes, and relationships in Mwilelo's story including perseverance, hope, and family. Titled Flight of Hope and Gladys’s Journey, the books were presented to Mwilelo in June 2018, and students have since visited a local preschool to read them.
Cold Spring continues its relationship with IRIS and holds annual clothing drives and participates in fundraising events as a school community.
Pages from the picture books Flight of Hope and Gladys’s Journey detailing refugee Gladys Mwilelo’s journey.
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