Since the early 1990s Oregon has witnessed an economic and politically based influx of immigrants and refugees. Most refugees resettled in Oregon initially settled in the greater Portland metro area, and Portland currently ranks eleventh among cities around the country that resettle international refugees. This research focuses on the reception and resettlement experiences of one sub-group of refugees and immigrants: those from Somalia. In the Portland area, Somalis are a largely marginalized social group. They live on the peripheries of society and are often segregated (physically as well as culturally) in what is historically a racially and culturally homogenous state. To date, limited research has focused on the reception experiences and adjustment challenges of the local Somali community. The intent of this descriptive case study is to explore and record the arrival and adjustment experiences and perspectives of Somali refugees and immigrants, so as to understand their journey of displacement and resettlement holistically. It investigates the context of their acclimatization into US society via the Portland urban area. It, more specifically, explores the nature of the arrival and adjustment experiences of the community, as well as the factors influencing them. It attempts to understand how these factors and the overall experience of adjustment influence the negotiation and construction of individual and collective identity of the local Somalis. In understanding the overall experience of resettlement within the community, the study also explores how well the needs of the community are met when it comes to support services and other resources for adaptation. Seventeen participants were interviewed from the community, and they indicated that the journey of adjustment is an on-going one that needs to be understood holistically while incorporating all the stages of exile: from displacement to resettlement. Identity formation and negotiation is a key process that emerged within the narratives, through which the experience of resettlement is maneuvered. Within the local community, identity informs the participation of Somalis within social networks, as well as the myriad social roles they take on as individuals, family members, and community members. This study finds some important similarities and differences in the experiences of the local Somalis with other local and national immigrant and refugee groups.

This thesis evaluated a program of the Lutheran Community Services of Oregon, an English as a Second Language training program for Somali refugee women. This study examined the English test results and questionnaires of 28 pairs of Somali women and North American volunteers involved in tutoring. The evaluation included communicating with the Somali women, North American tutors, and Lutheran Community Services staff. The researcher created a literacy test, piloted it, and created questionnaires with the assistance of the staff. Before the tutoring began, the researcher created a needs assessment for the Somali participants and visited each Somali woman's home with a Somali interpreter to administer the initial student questionnaire, B.E.S.T. Test, Written Form Test, and needs assessment. The researcher administrated the initial questionnaire to the tutors. Next, the researcher observed the literacy and cultural trainings for the tutors and observed three pairs of tutors and students during tutoring sessions at the students' homes. The researcher attended an informal party for tutors and staff during the middle of the program and administrated the mid-term questionnaire at the party and over the phone. The evaluator discussed the program with the staff every couple months. The final step was going to each Somali woman's home to conduct the final student questionnaire, B.E.S.T. Test, Written Form Test. The final tutor questionnaire was completed over the phone. The researcher and Lutheran Community Services staff presented the findings at the 2000 Oregon Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (ORTESOL) Conference. Some of the more significant findings about creating effective programs are that programs for pre-literate refugees should use quantitative and qualitative methods of evaluation and should offer a non-threatening atmosphere for pre-literate adult refugees. Arranging for students to study in their own homes with tutors has positive as well as negative points. The views and languages all of the stakeholders during an evaluation should be considered. It is recommended that programs make materials specifically for their participants, create and offer literacy training specifically made to help tutors teach the targeted populations, and include cultural training for the students and tutors.