Diversity Fellow Project, Sheyhan Gelle
Building Meaningful Community Connections (Gelle)
Building Meaningful Community Connections (2222 K) Download
Project Narrative
Being a Diversity Fellow helped me get to know other families like myself who were having similar experiences. Even though there are a lot of resources available to families who have children with disabilities, what’s missing was massive exposure to support from other families, who share the same culture, religion, and at times even the same life experiences.
Working on the Dugsi/ Al Rahman center project for the fellowship, a lot of the time was spent exposing the community to a concept of an inclusive religious program that would allow children with neurodevelopmental disorders and varying other disabilities to attend the program. We were able to partner with a local parent who had already started the program. The benefit of partnering with the local community was essential to our project because of having the community buy-in and to have a platform to have this project continue long term. In less than a year, we were able to reach about 70-100 individuals, which included: student volunteers, parents, siblings, teachers, Imams, and the community at large. The range exists because of workshops, and small community gatherings where attendees would just listen and not participate much.
Activities included attending a lot of community workshops, where we presented on our project, information sessions, and my favorite one was having one on one time with parents and talking to them about a vision where their children could all attend programs in the community, together. Casting out a vision that is all about inclusion for all, was a bittersweet moment for myself.
I have always had a calling to help others like myself, and thus why I chose social work as a profession. The fellowship hasn’t altered my future career plans as much, other than the need to want to be more active in my community and continue my advocacy. I want to be able to reach more families at a larger scale, and I am in the process of securing a contract with local counties to work with children & adults with varying disabilities at a larger scale. Time permitting, I would also like to apply for the MN LEND Fellowship next year. I have heard great reviews from previous colleagues, and my current ICI Mentor- Rebecca-Dosch Brown, who has been a great resource to have and utilized, recommended I apply. Future efforts to continue with Al-Rahman center also includes creating inclusive space building for families and have sensory room capacity. This can't happen without fundraising, to the community and larger organizations. We would also continue supporting Abdi (the parent who started the Dugsi program), and potentially move this to a larger capacity either via continuing to support Abdi's/the parent's inclusive Dugsi, fundraising for the sensory room at the mosque, or other ideas ahead for the Al Rahman.
This was a very beneficial opportunity for me as it exposed me to a larger network of professional support. My only recommendation to upcoming fellows would be that the project should somewhat be personal, as the passion can always be seen/felt in the work that’s done.