McNair Scholar 2019 Jessica Sanchez
Jessica Sanchez is a soon to be senior at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, majoring in Family Social Science and double minoring in youth studies and social justice. Her research interests revolve around understanding common experiences amongst underprivileged and under presented communities and how to best assist them. Ms. Sanchez plans on getting her M.A. in Social Work.
My dream is become a positive impact in my community by providing underprivileged communities with the resources necessary for better lives.
Research project
The Implementation and Evaluation of the Financial Education Curriculum for Karen Young Adult Refugees
Abstract: There are a number of reasons as to why refugees decide to leave their native homes and seek a new life in another country. With regards to Karen refugees who originally come from Burma/Myanmar, they were forced out of their native country due to violent persecution. After leaving their native homes and living in Thai refugee camps, many Karen refugees resettled in Minnesota and faced a number of barriers due to the lack of knowledge and skills that are needed to survive. Thus, these Karen communities need the knowledge and skills to navigate the U.S. financial system, which is why our research team partnered up with the Karen Organization of Minnesota in order to create financial educational modules to demonstrate the effectiveness of increasing their financial knowledge and practices into the young adult Karen population within Minnesota.
Faculty mentor
Dr. Catherine Solheim is a professor in the Family Social Science department at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Solheim received her Ph. D. in Family Social Science in 1990. Her research specializes in the study of social justice and resource management for diverse families living in our communities today, specifically during refugee families’ resettlement and adjustment transitions. Additionally, her areas of interests are families and their unique cultures, transnational family systems, ambiguous loss, human ecology, and social justice theories. Dr. Solheim is published in multiple research journals and has presented her work nationally and internationally. She has been a McNair faculty mentor for the past seven years.