University of Waterloo Co-op Students Support Refugee Education in Thailand

Education is one of The Steele Family Foundation’s core pillars, and our work continues through both local and international partnerships. One of these partnerships is with the University of Waterloo’s Changemakers in Co-op program, which supports students who want to use their skills in meaningful ways.

With financial support from The Steele Family Foundation, two students, Bruce Wu and Rewa Shukla, completed their co-op terms in Thailand with the Inclusive Education Foundation. The organization focuses on enrolling refugee children in school and strengthening the skills of migrant teachers who work along the Thai-Myanmar border.

Rewa, a first-year math student, helped lead a ten day calculus workshop for refugee teachers from Myanmar. She worked on lesson plans, created simple teaching materials, and helped format research reports used for outreach and advocacy. Bruce, a business and math double major, built real-time tracking tools to support school enrollment and classroom supplies. He also trained local staff on digital workflows to make daily operations easier.

Their work supported education access for more than one thousand refugee children and helped give local teachers stronger tools and knowledge to bring back to their communities.

These co-op experiences build both skills and character. They also reflect what we believe as a foundation, when young people grow through education, entire communities benefit.

You can read the full story at the University of Waterloo website.