Article 26 Backpack Reclaims Right to Education for Student Refugees
Story summary: In 2023, only 7 percent of refugees had access to higher education — a stark contrast to the 42 percent global average enrollment rate among non-refugees. As social and institutional barriers prevent at-risk young people from continuing their education or gaining employment, the Article 26 Backpack program gives them the space to safely store and share their professional identity. Today, the program has reached over 5,000 student refugees worldwide and is actively expanding its services to connect with even more communities in need. In this article, learn how the Article 26 Backpack is revolutionizing refugee access to higher education and how UC Davis students are getting involved.
When student refugees flee from war, violence, natural disaster, economic collapse, or poverty, their lives are disrupted. Plans to finish their education, seek a job, or learn a trade are put on hold and are replaced with an unknown, difficult path. Once they find safety, reconnecting with higher education can be extremely challenging. For instance, what do you do if the university you attended is closed or has been destroyed? Do you have an official transcript to show proof of your education? Can you pay the application and testing fees of the university you want to attend?
Addressing these challenges is the core mission of Article 26 Backpack, commonly referred to as Backpack. Developed at UC Davis, the program features a digital tool that gives students a safe space to store and share documentation and a path to rebuild their future for themselves, their families, and their communities. Reflected in its name, the program defends one of the most important universal human rights: Article 26, Right to Education.
“When displaced people are forced to move to another country, a lot of times they really have no way of proving their education and work experience, which in a lot of ways is proving their life experience, capabilities, and talents. Documentation is the thing that, a lot of times, their educational and future livelihood hinges on,” said Dheera Dusanapudi, a UC Davis student and the Student Director at Backpack.
“That's why Backpack is so important in saying ‘I do have the same educational pedigree as anyone else. I am perfectly equipped to work in the field I was working in before the displacement happened. I am still a person with all my hopes, dreams, and futures.”’
Digital tool for academic and employment mobility
Backpack's free cloud-based tool, built by the UC Davis Information and Educational Technology (IET) web development team, has a simple enrollment process — all you need is an active email address and internet access.
With these essentials, a student can upload critical documentation such as diplomas, resumes, assessments, or creative work to their Backpack, which is on a secure web server that only the student can access. The student may share their Backpack with potential employers, admission officers, and scholarship agencies using a key that gives viewers limited, controlled access. To further protect the student’s privacy, the key expires after seven days.
Another component that is uploaded to the Backpack is a visual statement of purpose that allows a student to share who they are, their experiences, and their goals. This media humanizes the documentation during review and reclaims the student’s dignity after displacement.
“Backpack allows for vulnerable populations to imagine another possibility for their lives, on top of continuing education. It can open more doors for refugees to see how they can contribute and exist within a new country or a new community,” said Fiona Ronne-Mcniel, a UC Davis student and the Director of Partnerships at Backpack.
This tool has been translated into several languages, including Armenian, Arabic, Ukrainian, Dari (Persian), Spanish, French, Russian, and English and continues to expand its reach to new student communities. See an example Backpack here.
Cultivating human rights advocacy on campus
Backpack is not only making a significant impact internationally, but also on the UC Davis campus. Students can get involved with hands-on humanitarian work, collaborating with organizations around the world and domestically to make the tool accessible to those in need.
Currently, there are teams working in Burma, Colombia, Afghanistan, Rwanda, Hong Kong, and the Arab World. There is also a team named Mochilla working domestically in California with Assembly Bill (AB) 540 and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) students.
Lauren Cegelski, a UC Davis student and the Director of Partnerships and Strategic Outreach at Backpack, shares insight into the collaboration process with an organization, using a recent initiative with the American University of Armenia to support displaced students in Artsakh as an example.
“It involves a series of weekly and bi-weekly meetings, encouraging the university to advertise Backpack and potentially hold a Backpack Enrollment Event.”
“Then we work with a subset of people at the university who are qualified to provide the Backpack so students can properly enroll and get the most out of it. After the initial event, we hope that the program will continue to grow in that home country,” said Cegelski.
Backpack provides more than valuable work experience; it nurtures a supportive community and educational journey that inspires students to become dedicated advocates and defenders of human rights.
“Backpack has given me a pathway of becoming a human rights advocate and being in a community filled with other advocates. I have team members who I can bounce ideas off of, talk to them about human rights issues that we think really matter that may be underreported, and do something about it,” said Dusanapudi.
Angelina Cicchini, a UC Davis student and the Director of Communications at Backpack shared a similar sentiment. “Backpack opened my eyes to how multifaceted human rights are, giving me the resources I needed to explore refugee issues within my education. It’s important to recognize that Backpack is not just a source for displaced persons or student refugees, but also an educational resource for people around UC Davis.”
Plans for the future
What began at UC Davis in 2016 as an idea to help students fleeing from the war in Syria has evolved into a full-scale project making an impact around the world six years later since its first deployment in 2018 in Lebanon.
In partnership with the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers and the American University in Beirut, Backpack — led by Keith David Watenpaugh, Professor and Director of Human Rights Studies and Director of Backpack — has reached over 5,000 students, known as Backpackers, worldwide.
Currently, teams at Backpack are focusing on enhancing the Backpack platform to better serve its users.
One initiative, led by Ronne Mcniel, involves creating streamlined translations of Backpack’s core information in languages where a full translation across the entire platform may not be feasible. This will ensure that the basics of Backpack are accessible during imminent displacement crises.
Additionally, Backpack is implementing an Article 26 Badge program: a micro-credential course that certifies students, whether at UC Davis or anywhere else, as Backpack Guides who can help others enroll in the tool globally. According to Cegelski, this program acts as a standardization practice that will be useful when communicating with other universities.
On the UC Davis campus, Backpack is looking to expand its network and outreach. “I would love for Backpack to expand relations with departments like Mesa or others who can connect us to more faculty and students to broaden our community and have more support,” said Ronne-Mcniel.
Support Article 26 Backpack
For those who would like to learn more about Backpack, how to enroll, or how your organization can get involved, visit backpack.ucdavis.edu. To stay up to date with its initiatives and achievements, follow Backpack on LinkedIn.