Mosaics

University professor Andrea Soleta Schmutz moved to Pocatello, Idaho, in 2022 and wanted to do something to connect and empower other immigrants. She founded Empowering Immigrant Women, has helped launch a weekly mental health clinic for immigrants and refugees, and will teach a community course to help New Americans navigate higher ed. Andrea, who is originally from the Philippines, collaborates with partners including Bridges, the Rotary Club of Pocatello, and University of Utah psychiatry residents. 

To other immigrants, Andrea says, “It might take you a lot of years to finally be established, but please be patient. … The rejections, failure – that’s not a weakness, that’s a strength, because you’ll be more powerful at the end.” 

CONNECT 

Empowering Immigrant Women website 

Hear Andrea on CEWT Talk – Idaho State University's Continuing Education/Workforce Training podcast 

Join Empowering Immigrant Women on Jan. 26, 2024, for a light dinner and to hear current students share about the class offered at CEWT this spring called Higher Education in the U.S. (geared towards refugees, immigrants, and first-gen) taught by Andrea Soleta Schmutz. We will also learn about the Idaho Launch, a program that provides grants for education and training programs. Starts at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 26 at the ISU Diversity Resource Center, 921 S. 8th Ave., Pocatello. RSVP to [email protected] 

Keep an eye out for the International Women's Day Event from 5:30–7 p.m. March 8 at the ISU Diversity Resource Center (invitation upcoming). We will celebrate International Women's Day by featuring local immigrant and refugee women in ‎Pocatello selling their home-baked goods and handmade items.‎

Idaho comes in last place for the number of doctors we have per capita. Yet when immigrant and refugee physicians move here, the process to get back to practicing medicine is complex and expensive. 

On today’s episode we’re joined by local doctors who are addressing this issue – Drs. Scott Smith, Paula Carvalho, and Sampson Nde.  

Scott is a mentor with Global Talent working with a cohort of New American medical professionals in Idaho, including Sampson, a physician and general surgeon from Nigeria. 

“Medicine, essentially, for me it’s a calling. Right from when I was a little kid I always wanted to take care of people and help people,” Sampson said. “When I arrived in the U.S. and I wasn’t able to do that, it was difficult for me. Because for all my life that’s all I wanted to do.” 

Sampson works at the Idaho Health Neighborhood Clinic in Nampa and has completed the necessary exams to apply for medical residency this winter. He helps other IMGs (international medical graduates) on their path to practicing medicine in the states. 

Dr. Paula Carvalho works at the Boise VA Medical Center, where she assists the Global Talent Docs cohort with simulation lab training. She and Scott are both Idaho WWAMI Medical School alumni. 

To contact Global Talent about this program, please email [email protected]. Reach out to Mosaics with your questions and ideas at [email protected]. 

ABOUT OUR GUESTS 

Sampson Nde was a physician and general surgeon in Nigeria for four years before moving to the United States in 2015. He obtained a master's degree in public health from Westminster College in Utah and worked in the public health space for more than two years in research and program development. 

In 2022, Sampson moved to Idaho and took a position at the University of Idaho as a program manager with Project ECHO, where he helped in the dissemination of medical education across the Gem State. 

With the help of Global Talent, he currently works at Idaho Health Neighborhood Center in Nampa as Lead Physician Extender, while also assisting in the development of a training curriculum for International Medical Graduate (IMG), which helps facilitate medical graduates' transition to a medical practice in the United States.  

He has passed the United States Medical Licensing Examinations (USMLE)  and will be applying for medical residency this winter. 

Dr. Scott Smith is an internal medicine doctor, educational researcher, and professor of medicine (emeritus) with the University of Washington. He was in residency leadership for 28 years and was a USMLE “National Boards” question-writer for eight years. He discovered that this was the perfect job experience to help immigrant and refugee physicians to get licensed to practice medicine in Idaho. He began working with Global Talent doctors in 2019 and since then, he has served 31 individuals from 19 countries. To date, six candidates have been accepted into residency and are practicing, or soon to be, in Idaho.  

Dr. Paula Carvalho attended medical school, residency, and fellowship at the University of Washington.  She is a Professor of Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Critical care, and Sleep Medicine and Adjunct Professor, Department of Surgery at the University of Washington.  She is also a Teaching Scholar at the University of Washington.  

She is the academic section chief of Pulmonary/Critical Care Medicine at the Boise VA Medical Center, as well as director of the intensive care unit, bronchoscopy service, and simulation program. Her specialty boards include Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Diseases, Critical Care Medicine, Sleep Medicine, and Palliative Care.  

Dr. Carvalho is a member of the American Board of Internal Medicine writing panel for Critical Care Medicine and an advisory member of the FDA Pulmonary panel.  She has received teaching awards for seven years from the University of Washington medical students and medical residents.

Meet the Afghan-American family behind the newest and one of the only Afghan restaurants in Boise, Taste of Persia.  

Hafiz & Bahija Karim left behind their lives and careers in Afghanistan in 1990 when they were targeted by the Taliban due to Hafiz earning his college degree abroad in Russia. The couple resettled in Boise with their four young children in 2005, knowing little English and working long hours to provide. Bahija went on to open her own drapery business, The Golden Needle. 

Taste of Persia is the family’s way of carrying on their customs, sharing traditional food with others, and providing for relatives who were displaced a second time when the war in Ukraine started last year.  

Taste of Persia is open 12-9 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday (closed Mondays) at 10386 W Ustick Road in Boise.

Get to know Jan Reeves and Patty Haller, who worked together in leadership of the Idaho Office for Refugees for 20 years. We’ll learn more about the history of resettlement in Idaho and why programs like Global Gardens, Global Talent, and the Refugee Speakers Bureau got their start. 

“So often refugees are labeled as refugees,” Patty said. “That’s an important part of their story, but it’s not the whole story.” 

We’ll hear what it was like to lead resettlement in Idaho through times of change and sometimes upheaval, such as 9/11, when there was growing fear but also a show of support for refugees and Muslims in Idaho.  

“There’s been a growing appreciation for the value that refugees bring to our community,” Jan said.  

We hope you’ll join us for this informative episode!

Mungo Ligoya uses the power of art to connect people and inspire conversations that challenge oppressive systems.  

Mungo was born and raised in Malawi, a country known as the warm heart of Africa. He moved to Idaho five years ago to attend The College of Idaho in Caldwell. His roots in the local community and relationships with fellow artists have inspired Mungo to continue building his career here. 

Mungo fuses Afro-Soul and RnB into his music. His paintings reflect a call to action for social justice. 

Last year Mungo founded MUNGOWONA ARTS LLC with a mission to help people connect with their bodies and feel confident in their movements, whether they are beginners or seasoned dancers. He teaches movement workshops all over the valley.  

Connect with Mungo on Instagram to learn about his upcoming concerts and exhibits: @mungowona. 

Thank you for listening! Please reach out to our MOSAICS team with your questions, feedback and suggestions for future guests: [email protected].

We’re joined by Reshma Kamal and Reshad Akbari to learn about cultural humility, the pitfalls of making assumptions about others, and the power of sharing one’s own story. 

Reshad was born and raised in Afghanistan. After graduating from university, he worked in government and as a freelance translator. He moved to the U.S. in March 2022 through refugee resettlement and for the past year has served as a community advisor with the International Rescue Committee. 

Reshma is also a community advisor at the IRC and the humanitarian and outreach director for the Islamic Center of Boise. In these roles she has worked to build connections and understanding with organizations such as Glocal Community Partners, Peace Catalyst International, and the Boise Police Department. She also serves on the Board of Trustees for the Boise Public Library. 

Listen to Rashad and Reshma’s stories to learn more about the meaning of ‘limbo,’ the importance of grace and curiosity, and the power of saying ‘I don’t know.’ 

Tune in for an engaging conversation with Winnie Christensen, founder and director of the Culture For Change Foundation based in Twin Falls, Idaho. Winnie immigrated to the U.S. from Kenya and attended high school in the small town of Blackfoot, Idaho, where her family was one of a handful of Black families. Over Winnie’s life she has helped build understanding through storytelling. She’s also given back to other immigrants as they adjust to life in America (seriously, did you realize how many different kinds of soaps exist on American grocery shelves and how confusing that can be?!). 

Winnie will keep you laughing and on your toes. Make a cup of tea and join us.

Ahmadi served as a transport pilot in the Afghan Air Force before relocating to Idaho Falls in 2022 through a private sponsorship group, along with two other pilots from Afghanistan.  

He’s now interning at the Idaho National Laboratory in Idaho Falls, a city of 67,000 people in eastern Idaho, and is working toward an electrical engineering degree at Idaho State University. He has applied for asylum with hopes that his wife and parents will be able to join him in Idaho in the future.  

A couple in Ahmadi's sponsorship group, Joe & Kim Mitchell, were featured on Mosaics in July. Check out Episode 10 to hear from them.

If you would like to support Afghan pilots on their journey to becoming certified to fly in the U.S., please see our Global Talent Pilot Training Project.

Your feedback, questions, and suggestions are welcome! Please reach us at [email protected].

This week we hear how the experiences of refugee resettlement impact children in the classroom, and what teachers can do to build a culture of welcome and empowerment. 

Our guests are Chantale Niyonkuru, the REACH Youth Program Specialist at the Idaho Office for Refugees, and Sara Skinner, a facilitator, trainer and consultant. 

Chantale and Sara are part of a Neighbors United group offering trainings for educators and law enforcement officers. The next training series for teachers starts Sept. 23. Learn more and sign up here (professional development credit available!) 

Also on Sept. 23, join in the fun at the Welcoming Week Family Field Day in Boise or the Community Unity Table dinner in Hailey. 

Please send us your feedback, questions, and ideas at [email protected]. 

About this week’s guests: 

Chantale has a bachelor’s in social work from Boise State University. As the first graduate in her family, Chantale is determined to inspire and empower young adults to dream big and not be confined. Chantale was born in East Africa and resettled in Idaho at the age of 8. 

Sara has a master’s in public health and specializes in creating workshops and meetings that are transformative for the people involved and for the communities where they live and work. Sara’s background is in community-based public health, and she brings cross-cultural experience from her work with farmworkers, refugees, and other immigrants, and from her time living in Spain and Brazil.

Today we’re getting caught up on resettlement updates in Idaho. It’s almost the end of the fiscal year, so you’ll learn about arrivals for the year and what we’re expecting for the year ahead. 

As always, you can reach us at [email protected] with feedback, questions and ideas.  

Links from today’s episode:  

Job Opening! Refugee Speakers Bureau coordinator, with the Idaho Office for Refugees 

Professional Development Course for Educators - New Americans in the Classroom  

20th Annual Gala on Oct. 13 – Agency for New Americans 

Ukrainian Welcome Center featured on KTVB 

Afghan Adjustment Act   

Welcoming Week  

Community Coordination Meeting on Nov. 28, Boise