JMU works to be a compassionate partner in refugee resettlement and officially became a member of Every Campus A Refuge (ECAR) in 2023. ECAR was founded by Dr. Diya Abdo at Guilford College and calls on colleges and universities to partner with local refugee resettlement agencies to house refugees on campus and assist them in resettlement.  

JMU is grateful to be part of the ECAR network and to partner with Church World Service and regional community partners to support refugee families as they acclimate to the area. The connections also offer transformative learning experiences for students as they connect, serve, and learn across borders and cultures.  

Welcome Corps on Campus 

JMU was selected to join the historic first cohort of Welcome Corps on Campus, a U.S. Department of State program founded in 2023 to open higher education opportunities to qualified refugee students and to support their resettlement as new Americans. Welcome Corps students are selected through a highly competitive process and bring big ambitions with them; we are privileged to have these future global leaders in our JMU family!