Refugees are individuals forced to flee their home countries due to persecution, war, or violence and cannot safely return. While many receive cultural orientation programs before and after arriving in the United States, these resources are often designed for adults, leaving refugee youth without adequate guidance during a critical period of transition. This project centers the voices of refugee youth, exploring how they perceive and adapt to the U.S. resettlement process. Using a phenomenological approach, we are conducting in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 30 youth (ages 14–22) living in a Midwest city. The transcripts are being coded thematically using NVivo to identify key patterns and shared experiences. These insights shed light on both the challenges youth face and the strengths they carry during pre-migration and resettlement. Findings will contribute to a peer-reviewed article and inform the development of a literary comic, a creative, accessible tool for youth, educators, and resettlement stakeholders. By highlighting youth narratives, the project not only fills a gap in orientation resources but also recognizes young refugees as experts of their own experiences. Their stories have the power to educate, advocate, and shape more inclusive support systems for future generations.
