A good education is important to many cultures all over the world; however, it is not always attainable.
Despite the odds, a former refugee from Sudan has earned a university degree.
“My daughter, Adhel Awan Riak, graduated in May 2008 from Park University with a degree in criminal justice and was the first person in our family to get a degree,” Awan Ater, a Sudan refugee, said. “If she were in Sudan, there would have been no chance for her.”
Riak said she was surprised by the opportunities for women to get an education and all the possibilities of financial aid. She said in Sudan, the men go to school to improve the community, but in America, people go to school to make themselves better people.
“Sudan has been struggling for a long time and are just now realizing the importance of an education and are allowing women to go to school,” said Riak. “I think I am very fortunate to have been able to come to America and get an education and better living compared to others in Sudan working hard to just make it.”
Her professors even encouraged her to pursue what she wanted to pursue — criminal justice — rather than what she may have had to study in Sudan.
Ater said life in Sudan was not the same as it is for them in America. They lived in urban areas without electricity or cars.
“We had a different life down there. We didn’t depend on money — we owned livestock and chickens,” Ater said.
They lived off the land and had enough food; however, because of the war, people were being killed and run out of the country. President Omer Bashir wanted all Christians to become Muslims, and Ater’s family didn’t agree with that.
In 1998, they fled from South Sudan to Egypt, where they became refugees and came to America. Ater’s whole family – his wife and 10 children – came with him.
“Don Bosco was an agent for refugees, and they brought us to Northeast. We say it was just by luck that we came to Kansas City,” Ater said.
Many of the Sudanese who relocate to Northeast have been coming since 1993 to escape a bloody war in Sudan.
“I’m happy to be part of Northeast because these people are very good. It’s like my home in Sudan. I feel really happy, and I enjoy staying here,” Ater said.
The number has increased with Northeast now home to almost 3,000 residents from Sudan.
“The Sudanese community in Northeast is growing, and we would like for education to be encouraged,” Ater said.
To continue encouraging education, Ater is also seeking his own bachelor’s degree. He will graduate next year with a degree in applied management from the National American University.
“We need to encourage the youth because they are the backbone and will be the ones changing the community,” Ater said. “We need them to further their education so they can become good leaders for Northeast.”
