Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY — Chrispin Sangano came to the United States 10 years ago after fleeing his home country, the Democratic Republic of Congo, to escape the Second Congo War.
After spending some time in Uganda, Sangano arrived in the U.S. seeking something.
"I knew that I needed something in my life, and that was education," Sangano said. "I never had the chance of getting that higher education back home."
Sangano, along with 63 other refugee graduates, saw their dreams of getting a college education come to fruition on Monday during a celebration held by the nonprofit One Refugee at the Garden Place at This is the Place Heritage Park in Salt Lake City.
The event, which has been held every year since 2014, celebrated college graduates from the 2021-22 academic year who come from various refugee backgrounds. Graduates include students from the University of Utah, Weber State University, Utah State University, Utah Valley University, Salt Lake Community College and Neumont College.
One Refugee supports college students from refugee backgrounds to help them successfully complete their higher education and transition into meaningful professional careers through scholarships, academic mentoring and professional development. The nonprofit was started in 2014 at the height of the Syrian refugee crisis when Roger and Sara Boyer decided they wanted to do something locally to support refugees.
"It came down to helping individuals access higher education, and that that would have the biggest impact on themselves and their families and their communities," said Raymon Burton, the group's executive director. "We developed a scholarship program that turned into an overall holistic program that would kind of provide wraparound services for all the students in our program."
Even after arriving in the U.S., Sangano faced challenges that could prove insurmountable to some students pursuing an education, but not him.
He had to take English classes that enabled him to get his GED diploma and enroll in Salt Lake Community College to pursue nursing. During his time at SLCC, Sangano's son was born, leaving him with a choice: pursue his education or start working to provide for his family. With support from his wife, the right path for Sangano became apparent.
"My wife looked at me and told me, 'You have to finish what you started — go back to school,'" Sangano said. "It was a tough moment, but with the help of my wife, we've overcome it."
After that, he completed his associate's degree at SLCC and transferred to the University of Utah where he received his bachelor's degree.
Another major motivation, Sangano said, was having the support of One Refugee along the way, which served as a "big relief."
"That was one of the biggest motivation, that I knew that I'm not going to let this opportunity be going away from me," Sangano said. "Every time I provide care to my patient and see how I give back to the community ... it's because of what One Refugee have done for me. I will always be thankful."
Burton said it has been "incredible" to see the success of refugees moving through the program.
"The resilience that I see from these individuals who are able to move forward and get their education is just, it's really deeply moving," Burton said. "It's the lives changed and it's seeing their children then have even more of a future because of their ability to get that education."
Since 2014, One Refugee has worked with over 800 students, totaling over 300 graduates and alumni. Currently, there are 325 refugees in the program.
"I don't know, maybe I will be dead if I was still in my country, maybe I'll be homeless, maybe I will be suffering somewhere there, but this country gave me hope," Sangano said. "I'm so thankful for that, and I thank God for this wonderful night."
