"Welcome to Vermont succeeds in its ambitious quest to tell four very different cultural stories while highlighting Vermont as its location".
Steve Ames, Executive Director
River Arts, Vermont
"Mira does an amazing job of allowing subject to speak openly while they share their stories;
therefore, we as audience members, appreciate the genuine personalities captured on screen."
Steve Rand, English Department Chair Person
Hardwood Union Middle/ High School
"An absorbing look into the lives of several local refugee families and their mixed feelings about becoming Vermonters."
Margot Harrison, Film Critic
Seven Days
"Welcome to Vermont enabled students to hear real stories of Vermonters who have had hardships that many students haven’t even considered. The film has impacted my students and will continue to impact them as they navigate their way into adulthood, their sense of what it means to be a 'Vermonter' and a citizen has changed from the viewing experience."
Nissa Kauppila, Teacher
South Burlington High School
"Mira Niagolova explores, in a nondidactic manner, such issues as linguistic difficulties in the workplace and the different rates of assimilation within families' multiple generations. The four-part structure, in which each story maintains its own integrity, lends itself more readily to the classroom discussions for which the film is partly intended"
Ethan de Seife, Arts Writer
Seven Days
"A very powerful way for students to learn about the refugee experience that they can't get from a book. "
Carolyn Sawin, Professor of Sociology and Anthropology
St Michael's College
"A perfect way to culminate a study of immigration to use the film in grades four through twelve."
“As soon as I heard Mira being interviewed on VPR, I knew that her film was the perfect way to culminate a study of immigration our sixth graders had been involved in. They had learned all about Ellis Island, tenements and sweatshops, discrimination and hardship, but were totally unaware of the huge immigrant community right here and now in Vermont. Mira's film helped them see real people experiencing culture shock, language barriers, financial difficulties and more, but also enjoying their new homes, making changes, and educating others about their own cultures. She chose to work with four families from different countries, making the film easy to use over a period of time. The questions and background information provided for each group is quite useful. I heartily recommend the film for use in grades four through twelve. “
Lynne Woodard, Teacher Librarian
Rumney and Doty Memorial Schools, Middlesex and Worcester Vermont