Category: Masters Theses

Title: Worker owned cooperatives:  An economic empowerment model for immigrant communities in Worcester, Massachusetts

Author: Rivera, Jessica

Date: May 2014

Description: Master’s Paper, Clark University, Department of International Development, Community and Environment

This paper explores worker owned cooperatives as a model of sustainable job creation and economic development for immigrants living in Worcester, Massachusetts. Based on informal interviews and consultation with secondary data, the author examines the strengths and challenges of the worker owned cooperative and its workforce development model. After an analysis of Worcester’s current cooperative movement the study provides recommendations aimed at fostering a cooperative environment that will attract immigrants by increasing community awareness, strengthening local networking, and supporting growth and market expansion.

Keywords: immigrants, cooperatives, job creation.

Cataloged by: Selina Sikder/ B. J. Perkins

Title: High prevalence of suicide ideation and refugee assistance: An investigative study among Bhutanese refugees in Worcester, Massachusetts

Author: Pun, Prayas

Date: May 2014

Description: Master’s Paper, Clark University, Department of International Development, Community and Environment

This study investigates the high incidence of suicide ideation among Bhutanese refugees located in Worcester, Massachusetts and the short comings of the resettlement system that has led refugees to this vulnerable situation. The author also examines the link between the high prevalence of suicide ideation and the assistance offered to incoming refugees by the United States Refugee Admissions Program (USRAP) and its affiliates. Based on informal interviews with clients, observation and secondary data, the author finds that a lack of interagency coordination, the short duration of refugee assistance and static refugee-integration frameworks have failed to address the individual needs of refugees. The current study concludes with recommendations to update policy, legislation and programs to address these needs.

Keywords: refugees, suicide, refugee resettlement, USRAP

Cataloged by: Selina Sikder/ B. J. Perkins

Title: Delving into the realm of refugees and their mental health services in Worcester, Massachusetts: Exploring the limits of access and barriers

Author: Shrestha, Chandani

Date: May 2015

Description: Master’s Paper, Clark University, Department of International Development, Community and Environment

This paper examines the gaps that exist in the accessibility and use of mental health services for refugees in Worcester, Massachusetts by using a combination of oral narratives, informal interviews and secondary data. The author identifies a number of reasons that mental health services are underutilized by refugees including a lack of resources and knowledge, inadequate transportation, a limited number of culturally sensitive service providers and interpreters, language barriers and stigma. The paper concludes by highlighting the important role resettlement agencies and health care providers can play in facilitating access to mental health services for refugees in Worcester.

Keywords: refugee, mental health, health services

Cataloged by: Selina Sikder/ B. J. Perkins

Title: Unsettled resettlement: Refugees and changed family dynamics in Worcester, Massachusetts

Author: Stephens, Benjamin

Date: May 2008

Description: Master’s Paper, Clark University, Department of International Development, Community and Environment

This paper examines how resettlement processes affect relationships in refugee families. It focuses on family dynamics pertaining particularly to partner and parent-child relations. The author argues that resettlement creates new circumstances that cause changes and modifications in family relationships that can increase tensions and have profound transformative impacts on refugee family dynamics. The paper concludes by highlighting several avenues for further research.

Keywords: refugees, family disunity, family unity, family dynamics, social adaptation, resettlement

Cataloged by: Peter Nelson/ B. J. Perkins

Title: Transnationalism and identity development in immigrant and refugee youth: Challenges, resources, and project findings

Author: Mosely, Jenna

Date: May 2009

Description: Master’s Paper, Clark University, Department of International Development, Community and Environment

This paper explores identity formation in first and second-generation immigrant and refugee youth influenced by transnational practices and attitudes. The author draws on a year-long research project with African and Southeast Asian teenagers entitled Bridging Barriers. The research highlights the sources of challenge (race, gender expectations, and multiple ideas of what it means to fit in) and sources of resource (supportive communities, a sense of purpose and privilege, and a counter-cultural mindset towards race facing these young immigrants). The author concludes that transnational attitudes and influences are supportive of healthy acculturation. However, how long these influences will persist is unclear.

Keywords: Africans, Southeast Asians, youth, social adaptation

Cataloged by: Peter Nelson/ B. J. Perkins

Title: Challenges for GED attainment: A case study on school dropout Bhutanese refugee youths

Author: Mishra, Lalit

Date: May 2013

Description: Master’s Paper, Clark University, Department of International Development, Community and Environment

Through quantitative and qualitative analysis, this paper explores the factors that prevent Bhutanese refugee youth (18 to 25 years old) in Worcester, Massachusetts from obtaining the General Educational Development (GED) certification. Its findings indicate that refugees’ educational background, a new environment, and the responsibility and accountability of the service providers present major challenges to attaining a GED. The author concludes that an inappropriate resettlement policy with a focus on economic self-sufficiency without consideration of socio-cultural status discourages Bhutanese refugee youth from obtaining a GED certificate.

Keywords: youth, Bhutanese, education

Cataloged by: Peter Nelson/ B. J. Perkins

Title: The refugee agricultural partnership program: A social network analysis of organizational partnerships and capacity in the United States

Author: Calano, Katherine

Date: May 2013

Description: Master’s Paper, Clark University, Department of International Development, Community and Environment

This paper investigates capacity-building outcomes of organizational community partnerships by way of a case study of refugee agricultural projects that were partially funded from 2010-2013 by the Federal Refugee Agricultural Partnership Program (RAPP) grant. The results of the study indicate that participation in local partnerships, as well as a network, can enhance organizational capacity which leads to improved provision of services.

Keywords: agriculture, agricultural training, refugee-local community relations

Cataloged by: Peter Nelson/ B. J. Perkins

Title: Negotiations at the interface: An examination of refugee resettlement processes

Author: Barritt, Meghan W.

Date: May 2008

Description: Master’s Paper, Clark University, Department of International Development and Social Change

This paper examines the processes underpinning refugee resettlement in the United States through a case study of the Resettlement Institute of New England (RINE). The study focuses on a key group of RINE’s employees -brokers -whose role is to mediate between the resettlement agency and different refugee, ethnic and national communities.

Keywords: refugee resettlement

Cataloged by: Peter Nelson/ B. J. Perkins

Title: Refugee education as a tool for integration: A comparative case study of the Worcester community approach to refugee education

Author: Palcic, M. Brigid

Date: May 2012

Description: Master’s Paper, Clark University, Department of International Development, Community and Environment

This paper compares the approaches to providing education to refugees in Worcester, Massachusetts to those used in three other communities. The author looks at both formal and informal programs and services offered by the city as well as nonprofit organizations. The results highlight the importance of understanding the histories and cultural backgrounds of newly arrived refugees to facilitate their integration and inclusion in the school system most effectively. The study concludes that there is a need for increased collaboration between the city and educational nonprofits to improve the integration of refugees in the city of Worcester.

Keywords: education, resettlement programs

Cataloged by: Peter Nelson/ B. J. Perkins

Title: What are the barriers to and facilitators of Type 2 Diabetes self-management among Vietnamese Americans in Worcester?

Author: Le, Thuha

Date: 2014

Description: Master’s Paper, Clark University, Department of International Development, Community and Environment

This paper focuses on Vietnamese Americans, one of the more at-risk populations in Worcester, Massachusetts for being diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes (TTD) to assess their understanding of the disease and of the self-management necessary to treat it. The goal is to find enough information to help health care providers and practitioners better approach the growing problem of TTD within the Vietnamese community. The author explores sociocultural factors that might hinder or facilitate diabetes self-management by conducting semi-structured interviews with individuals diagnosed with TTD and two focus group discussions with non-diabetic individuals with diabetic family members. The findings indicate that all participants were unaware of diabetes, its complications, and its symptoms prior to being diagnosed and that health care providers did not provide enough information. The author concludes that there is a need for health care providers and practitioners to provide culturally sensitive information to assist the Vietnamese community in their diabetes self-management.

Keywords: Vietnamese Americans, Type 2 Diabetes, immigrant health

Cataloged by: Selina Sikder/ B. J. Perkins