Culture Connect: Jenks AVID Student Abeni Murage, Turns Isolation Into Empowerment
Photo Credit: tulsa.cultureconnect on Instagram
By: Maliyah London
Have you ever yearned for a sense of belonging or connection? To have people who know what it’s like to be you in a sea of people who don’t? As a Junior at Jenks High School, Abeni Murage knows that feeling very well.
Jenks High School Junior Abeni Murage
Photo Credit: Abeni Murage
“As an immigrant from Kenya, I remember how confusing and isolating it felt to move to the United States," said Murage. "I was trying to survive a new system while still attempting to hold on to my culture.”
But instead of letting that feeling define her, Murage decided to help define the experience for others.
“I just want people to feel like they have someone who understands them, and sees them,” said Murage.
That's why, along with her co-founder Farrah Sallem (a student at Booker T), Murage launched Culture Connect over the summer as a part of the Tulsa Changemakers program. It’s a student-led network dedicated to giving young immigrants the critical support system they need to feel "seen, heard, and understood", and turning personal confusion and isolation into communal empowerment. Giving Tulsa youth the resources they need to live life to its fullest potential in America.
Resilient Tulsa advertisement poster, advocating for the equality of opportunity for Tulsa's immigrant population
Photo Credit: Culture Connect Instagram and research on Flourish Tulsa
According to the city of Tulsa’s Mayor’s Office of Resilience and Equity, as of 2024, over 11% of Tulsa’s population includes immigrant residents, that’s 46,000 people, children, fathers, and mothers, and around 850 refugees currently reside in Tulsa county alone, and nearly 50% of refugee youth report feeling socially isolated or misunderstood at school.
This research is a part of the Resilient Tulsa initiative, a plan that:
“Addresses critical challenges ranging from economic inequality to disaster preparedness to access to quality education and jobs” according to the City of Tulsa website.
This is the problem Murgae is trying to address.
While Culture Connect is still in the process of becoming a registered nonprofit, Murage insists the mission is simple.
"It’s not something huge, I just want the refugee and immigrant youth in the Tulsa community to have a place to feel seen and noticed, and build the support system we [she and her co-founder] needed that most people don't get, " said Murage about the organization. "I want people to feel like they have someone who understands them, and sees them”.
For Murage, the goal is to provide more than just a meeting space; she wants to provide an immediate support system, a family.
Doing so by matching newcomers with experienced mentors from their culture, hosting safe cultural events and support groups, and partnering with schools and local organizations to reach out to youth and families.
"I don't just want to be a role model, I want to be a friend," said Murage. “Especially with the state of the world right now, we are so divided as a country; this is when people need community and connection the most."
This is central to Culture Connect’s philosophy: building genuine bonds where students can talk about anything and everything. From family and social-political concerns to academic pressures.
Murage’s motivation comes from her self-awareness of her own good fortune. She explained how she knows firsthand that feeling different from everyone else, and knowing they see you that way too, can be extremely isolating.
"Growing up, I always felt lucky for the group of friends I had, because I know most people like me, immigrants, especially in a place like Oklahoma, they don't have that," said Murage.
Abeni Murage, Hazel Ifeoma, and their friends at Jenks Homecoming 2025
Photo Credit: Ellie mink
Murage heavily values the community she’s been blessed with, which has been one of the biggest motivators for her in this process, and her drive and work ethic are already inspiring her AVID peers.
"Abeni has always been a hard worker," said Jenks junior Hazel Ifeoma, an AVID student and one of Murage’s closest friends, who has watched Murage launch the organization. “Abeni is such a determined person, it doesn't matter what the obstacle is, she’ll always get it done. She’s very self-motivated and always wants to be involved with the community and ways to help. I’m really proud of her.”
Murage, who maintains her academics as a Jenks AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), and AP student, as well as a member of Jenks High School’s ISP (International Scholars Program) organization, and multiple other JHS clubs, embodies the idea that you don't need to wait until adulthood to solve a problem that affects your life.
Murage at Jenks International Scholars Program’s 2025 Night of Culture Event
Her personal experience of immigrating from Kenya to the United States now serves as the perfect perspective of an "older sister” or mentor, for the kids she’s helping with her non-profit, and just anyone who is struggling to navigate the U.S. school system and newfound culture.
The work of Culture Connect isn't just conceptual, it's active. The organization recently participated in a volunteer event in September at the Gathering Place in Tulsa, as a part of Resilient Tulsa, demonstrating its commitment to building community outside of school walls.
Abeni Murage and Farrah Sallem (far right), Culture Connect co-founders, at the September gathering place event.
Photo Credit: Abeni Murage
Culture Connect proves that the most powerful solutions often come from those who have faced the problem themselves. By transforming her own journey of self-discovery and connection into a service for others, Abeni Murage has not only co-created a necessary support network in the Tulsa community, but she’s also provided a powerful example for all of Jenks High School. That you don't have to sit by and watch as things happen.
Her success with this organization is a message to any Jenks student or young person looking to take action and make a difference: If she can do it, so can you!
