Mussa Farah knows how important education can be for young Somalis living in Columbus.
Many have ended up in jail after slipping down a path through drugs and gangs, he said. Almost always, the first step on that path is dropping out of school.
“We have parents who come in and complain their son has dropped out of school. We have parents who come to our center who have a son in jail,” said Farah, president of the Horn of Africa Community Center.
He helped plan a graduation ceremony last night for 119 Somali students, which organizers hoped would build respect for education among youths and parents.
Dozens of universities and community service organizations underwrote the celebration int the Hilton Columbus at Easton. Both high-school and college graduates were honored.
That sponsorship indicates the growing size of the Somali community in Columbus, SomaliCAN executive director Jibril Hirsi said.
“Officials are realizing that their Somali constituents are becoming more powerful,” said Hirsi, the lead organizer. “They are recognizing that this community is strong.”
And it’s growing steadily, said Dan Good, superintendent of Westerville schools.
“Based on the number that are being recognized, I’d have to say we’re pretty successful” at integrating Somalis into the culture, Good said.
More than 80 of the honored graduates were from Columbus City Schools. All live in central Ohio.
“I want to put my parents in a better place,” said Ayub Ibrahim, 18.
Ibrahim came to Columbus in 2000 from Nairobi, Kenya. He had lived in a refugee camp and said he hopes to return to Somalia to help rebuild his country.
Ibrahim graduated from Horizon Science Academy. This fall, he’ll go to Ohio State University to study civil engineering.
His family already understands the power of education, he said.
“Education is valued because my parents, they didn’t come all the way from Somalia for nothing.”
He and his family came to escape what Farah calls “hell” – the civil war that has wracked Somalia for 20 years. The country’s weakened government has led to lawlessness, piracy and extreme poverty.
“There is lots of bad news coming out of Somalia,” Hirsi said. “This is good news.”
Ahmed Dhere, 18, of Westerville, and his twin sister, Ayan, graduated this year from Westerville Central High School. They will go to Ohio State this fall. Ahmed plans to become a dentist, and Ayan wants to be a pharmacist.
They were born in Nairobi and have never been to Somalia. Ayan doesn’t know whether she’ll take her knowledge back to Africa.
“When it gets better, I’ll go,” she said. “If it gets better.”
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Columbus Dispatch
