Life as an adolescent can be challenging, but for immigrant and refugee children, language and cultural barriers can make the challenges of youth even harder. The founders of the Somali Youth Soccer Association wanted to find a way to help kids overcome those challenges.

Their East African Homework Help and Soccer Program does just that. The free program organizes community volunteers to provide afterschool homework assistance for East African students on weekdays and brings kids together to learn and practice soccer drills on the weekends.

Co-founder of the program and father of three, Ahmed Kasim, says he wanted to build a program that would give East African children a healthy outlet for stress and a place to connect with community. He also noted the importance of academic support as English is a second language for many East African students and may not even be spoken in their households. Part of the afterschool program also includes networking opportunities for limited English-speaking parents to support each other and share resources.

In Somalia, and many East African countries, soccer is an important part of the culture and community. Ahmed, who leads the weekend soccer lessons, hopes the program can connect children to their home country and provide possible paths to future scholarship opportunities. Post-pandemic, Ahmed says he would like to take this structure to other cities to help build similar programs for East African students across the nation.

The program began in January, and the leaders look forward to continuing to serve students throughout the school year and beyond.

This program is supported by the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods’ Neighborhood Matching Fund. The application period is currently open for the next round of program funding. The application deadline is April 5.