College and university campuses are well-positioned to welcome newcomers and support them in achieving success upon arrival. Campus communities and ecosystems provide access to key services, expertise, and infrastructure, such as housing. Short-term and long-term housing is a critical area of support that presents an opportunity for institutions to support refugee resettlement. This section provides information and examples of how campuses can leverage their housing to welcome refugees and additional support resources to do so.
Learn the basics of refugee resettlement to support newcomers success in the U.S.
Please visit this page, to find basic information about refugees and resettlement.
Campus Housing for Refugees Webinar
This SHERR webinar showcased ideas on how colleges and universities can identify and use on and off campus spaces as temporary shelter or short-term housing for refugees. Several models, including the Every Campus A Refuge (ECAR) model are discussed. This webinar was co-hosted by Refugee Housing Solutions: A Church World Service initiative for all Resettlement Agencies. You can watch the webinar here and access its slides here.
Preparing Refugees to Live on a Higher Education Campus: Norms, Practices and Culture
This 2025 resource developed by SHERR present curated resources for college/university campus stakeholders who are seeking to support refugee newcomers with aspects of their housing needs, whether on or off campus. Others may also find these resources useful, such as refugees themselves, resettlement organizations*ons, and community members. You can access the document here.
The AHLAN Manual (ahlan is an Arabic term to express welcome), created and published in 2023 by Every Campus A Refuge (ECAR). This manual is the premier implementation guide for making higher education institutions welcoming to refugees. The guide is sponsored by Welcoming America’s Fund to Foster Belonging and the Refugee Resettlement Initiative of the National Association of System Heads (NASH). More information and the link to download the file is available here.
Tips for Approaching a State Legislature regarding Funding for Refugee Support
This document shares tips for approaching a state legislature regarding funding to support refugee resettlement. While the discussion that generated these tips (by the SHERR’s Housing and campus Utilization Community of Practice and Action) was focused on housing (specifically, coalition advocacy for state support for campus transitional housing), the ideas here are relevant to any state funding advocacy related to refugee resettlement. Access the resource here
Responding to Resistance and Skepticism regarding Housing Refugees on a Higher Education Campus
As institutions of higher learning seek to take on roles in addressing global humanitarian crises, some have explored housing non-enrolled refugees on campus as a tangible way to demonstrate commitment to social responsibility and to provide learning opportunities for their students. This noble initiative sometimes encounters resistance from various stakeholders, driven by concerns about campus security, resources, community dynamics, or ideological beliefs. This resource seeks to address some of these concerns by presenting a framework for engaging skepticism, fostering constructive dialogue, and building broad-based support. Access the resource here.
Best Practices for Asylum Seekers (June 2025)
This June 2025 ECAR guide is a step-by-step manual for colleges and universities to host and support asylum-seeking individuals or families on campus. It outlines key phases including determining institutional capacity, gaining administrative buy-in and partnering with local organizations – and covers operational facets such as volunteer management and tracking legal/educational/volunteer tasks. Access the resource here.
National Program Coordinator Handbook (June 2025)
This handbook provides program coordinators with a practical, step-by-step guide for running an ECAR campus chapter, covering core responsibilities such as partnership building, volunteer coordination, guest support, housing logistics, safety procedures, and program administration. The handbook provides checklists, sample documents, timelines, and operational templates to help institutional leaders and coordinators establish sustainable campus-based resettlement ecosystems. Access the resource here.
Leveraging College and University Housing for Newcomer Welcoming
In the face of the U.S. housing crisis, resettlement practitioners must embrace creative solutions to housing newcomers. One such solution involves partnering with institutions of higher education to meet newcomer temporary or long-term housing needs. Access a resource developed by Refugee Housing Solutions (RHS) here.
FAQs on Renting to Refugees and Other Eligible Newcomers
Every Campus A Refuge (ECAR) mobilizes colleges and universities to host refugees on campus grounds and support them in their integration and resettlement while providing a transformative education to students. ECAR provides connections, resources, expertise, and funding. It helps to identify potential ECAR campuses, connect campuses with local refugee resettlement agencies, build partnerships between them, and develop and implement the program — hosting and curricular/co-curricular — through Best Practices, Trainings/Workshops/Certificates, Manuals, Handbooks, and other open access resources. ECAR has developed FAQs for Resettlement Agencies to better understand the organization, available here. Find more information about ECAR and becoming an ECAR Chapter here. Contact ECAR here.
Refugee Housing Solutions (RHS) provides technical housing support to resettlement practitioners, landlords and property managers, refugees, and volunteers across the United States and partners with them to develop and implement cohesive strategies to increase the availability and affordability of housing. RHS works collaboratively with resettlement practitioners by engaging key stakeholders as the organization innovates and expands affordable housing solutions across the U.S. Addressing the housing crisis will take multiple solutions, policy changes, and a collaborative effort to increase access to affordable housing. Contact RHS here or and sign up for updates here.