When Aluat Willial of South Sudan first arrived in Thunder Bay to begin her program in practical nursing at Confederation College, she never imagined the welcome she would receive when getting off the plane.

“When I came here the first thing I saw was my local community at the airport with signs up waiting for me and all smiling and it was the best thing ever,” she said. “And they have been with me throughout.”

Willial is one of six students in the student refugee program at Confederation College, which celebrated five years of the program’s success on Tuesday.

The student refugee program provides refugee students with access to post-secondary education and is led by the World University Service of Canada (WUSC).

Daniella Pajel, WUSC lead of the Confederation College committee, said th

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