Organization Type: Advocacy & Service, Community & Cultural
Mission: The Marshallese Educational Initiative is a 501c3 not-for-profit organization located in Springdale, Arkansas, where the highest concentration of Marshallese reside outside of the home islands.
Marshallese Education Initiatives
Location: Springdale
Organization Type: Advocacy & Service, Community & Cultural
Events
Please visit this organization's website or social links below for upcoming events. You can also check out CACHE's Arts + Culture Calendar, featuring hundreds of creative events every month in Northwest Arkansas. Zero FOMO.
Mission
The Marshallese Educational Initiative is a 501c3 not-for-profit organization located in Springdale, Arkansas, where the highest concentration of Marshallese reside outside of the home islands.
About
Fast Faqs:
1st Marshallese-focused 501(c)(3) nonprofit service organization established in Arkansas, est. July 2013
4 full-time and 10 part-time Marshallese staff
Received 501(c)(3) status in May 2014
20,000 – Marshallese residing in NWA, where MEI is based
Latest major event: hosted Nuclear Remembrance Day 2025: at the Riverside Church in NYC
Latest award: named Health Hero from Physicians for Social Responsibility for nuclear awareness work in 2024
Coolest Fact: Showcased Marshallese youth art in exhibits at the United Nations in NYC and Geneva, and in NYC Times Square
MEI was founded in July 2013 by non-Marshallese educators and Marshallese community members to raise awareness of Marshallese history and culture and facilitate dialogue by blending academic research with community outreach. Today, our organization is led and staffed by an extraordinary group of Marshallese community leaders and advocates.
MEI staff serve our community through direct outreach, helping Marshallese residents navigate life in Arkansas and the United States. We offer programming to empower Marshallese youth, women, and elders, and share our history and culture through humanities-based projects and classes. We work closely with our partners to better health outcomes of our community members, continue to work to increase educational attainment levels of Marshallese from GED through higher education, and remain committed to educate the world of the ongoing consequences of nuclear testing and climate change on Marshallese bodies and lands.
We offer translation and interpreter services, and since 2016 we have offered classes and intercultural competency trainings geared toward public school teachers, healthcare providers, and other agencies that serve Marshallese clients.
As a proud intercultural organization, we respect everyone’s voice and appreciate where we are alike as well as areas of difference. We embrace ippān doon as we continue to promote and facilitate dialogue among diverse communities to foster positive social change.
Website, Video & Social Links
Website:
https://www.mei.ngo/
Video Link:
Social Links:
https://www.facebook.com/MEInonprofit/
https://vimeo.com/meinonprofit
https://www.instagram.com/meinonprofit