Evelyn Christina Wiredu

Evelyn Christina Wiredu is a senior majoring in Culture and Politics, with a focus on Education, Migration, and Storytelling at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. She has spent time on campus working for the Department of Performing Arts and as a Teaching Assistant for Maps of the Modern World and Introduction to International Relations for both college and high school students. She is also involved with various black student organisations such as the Black Student Alliance, African Society of Georgetown, and Black Theatre Ensemble. In addition, she has been learning American Sign Language for a number of years. In Summer 2025, Evelyn Christina joins the MERLIT team - in association with the VUB's BIRMM research group - for a Migration-focused study placement.  In particular, she'll be researching the concepts informing language education in Belgium-based associations that accompany and support refugees and asylum-seekers, by carrying out qualitative interviews.

Internship Summary – In Evelyn Christina's Words

Through my collaboration with VUB, an English and Dutch research university in Brussels, I was able to reach out to administrative coordinators at BelRefugees and Ligo in order to conduct interviews. I conducted 7 semi-structured interviews with educators from various organizations that support language learning for refugees (Ligo Brusseler, BelRefugees and House of Dutch).

Additionally, while at VUB I had the opportunity to learn from other Master's and PhD students who worked with the research group MERLIT (Meritocracy and Literature) that hosted me as a visiting researcher. This was an amazing opportunity to learn more about Belgium from the other students who were either citizens or had lived/worked there for years. I learned a lot about Belgian history and politics from them.

Finally, I also used my time at VUB to explore Brussels, Antwerp, and Ghent, getting firsthand experience navigating these cities with rich histories. From museum and cultural site visits to market and shopping hall centers I learned so much about Belgian culture by participating in and observing my surroundings. This experience was incredibly helpful in providing context for my research and it would not have been possible without the institutional support at VUB!