By Kristin Wolf

Since meeting Todd and Eliza Woloson, founders of Global Education Fund, and being introduced to the work GEF is doing, it has been my honor to help support and spread the word about the organization. Global Education Fund puts learning opportunities directly into the hands of children who would otherwise not have them. This is powerful work.

I cannot think of a more hopeful image than a child opening a book for the first time. From the moment they turn that first page, a door opens that can never be closed. Inside their new world are ideas, cultures, and frontiers they never dreamed of. And, as those who have children in their life know, when a child’s imagination is sparked, anything is possible.

I personally believe that education is the “keystone” factor for peace and prosperity in our world today. Just as the keystone species of an old growth forest, the spotted owl, indicates the overall health of thatforest and its many species, so does the level of education within a country indicate the overall well-being of its people.

How can hunger be stopped? Human rights secured? Water shared? Diseases eradicated? Our planet’s health restored? Peace attained? As a mother, I wish I knew the answers to these questions. Still, I do know this: The solutions will not come from those shut in the isolation of illiteracy. They will come from the imaginations of those who, as children, were lit from inside with the power to learn. I hope you will join me in supporting them – by supporting GEF.

Kristin is not only a friend and supporter of Global Education Fund, she is an accomplished writer and author of THE WAY (Crown/Random House, 2011).

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Margarita Eliada Mendoza is in the 3rd grade. She lives in the Ilóm neighborhood in the town of Chajul, Guatemala, not far from the Saber sin Límites library. Her parents represent the majority of adults in Chajul. Her father goes to work in the family’s small field every day. He tends the corn and cuts wood which he carries home on his back because the family cannot afford a horse. Like most women in Chajul, Eliada’s mom is a housewife. She spends her days at home taking care of her children, cleaning, making tortillas, and weaving guipiles (traditional woven blouses) for her children or to sell in the market.

Eliada comes to the library every single day to work on her homework or practice reading. Since neither of her parents went to school and both are illiterate, they cannot help their children with their studies.

Eliada has always been very determined to learn how to read and with 40 students in her class at school, the teacher is unable to give students the individual attention that they need. Eliada prefers to do her homework in the library because, like most families in Chajul, she lives in a tiny house made of adobe, which is poorly lit, noisy, and without a space to study.

Eliada is determined to find a way to continue studying. She wants to be a teacher so that she can teach other children in her town to learn how to read. When asked how the library has changed her life, Eliada says: “Before, I couldn’t read, but now I have learnt how and I have also learnt to be more organized and clean, both in doing my homework and at home.” Eliada wants to become someone important and helpful in the community of Chajul.

Global Education Fund awarded a book grant to the Saber sin Límites (Limitless Horizons) library in 2011.

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Karen joined the GEF team in 2011 with over 25 years of experience in social change philanthropy. She has won awards for her activism in human rights education and women’s issues, and previously served as Executive Director of the Lambi Fund of Haiti.

With this experience, including raising over $25 million for rights-based organizations around the world, Karen is well suited to support GEF’s strategic growth. She is also a former board president of Grantmakers without Borders and is active in the International Education Funders Group. Karen earned her Master’s degree in Global Studies at the University of Denver, after spending the earlier part of her career in the corporate world.

Julie Shaw, our outgoing Executive Director, has moved into a consulting
role with GEF, focusing on program development. Julie recently completed extensive tours in India and Kenya on behalf of GEF, which included site visits to existing and potential new partners.

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Myriam Augustin

Myriam is an expert in the field of education with more than 25 years of experience in the U.S., Africa and Haiti. Her expertise encompasses international education in development, bilingual and English as a Second Language (ESL) education, university teaching, teacher training, curriculum development, girls’ education, program development, and monitoring and evaluation. Myriam has held senior level positions in two international NGOs working to develop, establish, and implement educational programs. Myriam is a co-founder of the Lambi Fund of Haiti, an organization that funds grassroots organizations working on sustainable development in rural Haiti. She presently teaches at Hunter College of New York. Myriam holds two Masters degrees from the Bank Street College of Education and has completed coursework towards her PhD at Columbia University.

Ravi Jain

Ravi is a senior derivatives and quantitative strategy professional with extensive experience working with financial services firms. He is currently COO of Tydall Trading and also runs an India focused fund. In the past, Ravi co-founded EGAR technology and IVolatility.com and is the author of numerous articles and papers on topics involving risk management and volatility in financial markets. Ravi was raised in India where his family has a history of leadership on educational policy issues. He received his degree in Electrical Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology in New Delhi and then received his MS in Operations Research at Baruch College. He and his family now live in Kennett Square, PA.

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With over 70 attendees, the crowd enjoyed music provided by Eastland musicians as well as GEF scholars and a feast of food. Students presented Fred with poems, speeches and songs to celebrate him and the Chair of the GEF Alumni presented Fred with a cake. Fred Afwai joined the GEF team in 2007 to help develop and manage pilot programs in Kenya. A founder of the Candlelight Church and Primary School in the Matopeni community of Nairobi, Kenya, Afwai and his family also operate a safe house for orphaned children. Fred is moving on to work full-time with his responsibilities for the church, school and orphanage.

In the words of Global Education Fund Board Chair Meg Porfido, “We know in our hearts that you live our mission and vision every day – with the example you have set for our scholars. You have shown them how to focus on the positive change they can bring to their own lives and the lives of others. In you, they experience a leader, mentor and friend who is a model of how to live a life with intelligence, integrity and grace. Our GEF family is blessed with your friendship and dedication to those around you. We wish you well and send you our deepest gratitude.”

While we bid Fred farewell, we look forward to continuing our partnership with Candlelight School.

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The United States, while lagging in some areas of education, is recognized as a leader in educating children with special needs. As a  result, teachers from a school in Kashmir, India, requested training in special needs education from GEF.

The school is located near the Pakistani border, a conflict zone, where many children have experienced trauma and/or injuries as a result of the violence. Others have congenital disabilities that have impacted their learning.

Global Education Fund provided the grant for two teachers to travel to New York where they received training in early diagnosis and intervention in learning disabilities and effective resources for teaching special needs students.

After visiting and observing a number of schools with outstanding programs for differently abled students, the teachers received specialized training from a number of experts including Dr. Kate Middleton and Cathy Hill. The teachers returned to India eager to share their newly gained knowledge.

With the remaining grant from Global Education Fund, they plan to:

• Create a resource room as a learning center space for students with special needs
• Implement procedures for early intervention and diagnosis
• Develop Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) for all special education students
• Modify instruction to meet the needs of the students based on IEP
• Develop a plan to meet the emotional and social needs of the children

The teachers said, “This trip was really an eye-opener for us. We learned new techniques to educate children in better ways. It was the first step on a ladder, an educational ladder, in making our school an even better place for learning. The biggest achievement was learning to incorporate these strategies in the beginning of a child’s school experience.”

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Movement for Child Rights to Childhood (MCRC)

MCRC is located in the Firozabad District near Agra, India which is a center in the glass-making industry and is notorious for exploiting child labor. MCRC rescues children from bonded labor and runs a private school where they work with 54 Dalit (lowest caste) children ages 6-14 years to help them reintegrate into the mainstream school system and catch up on their education.

GEF has supported MCRC since 2007. A 2011 grant enabled the group to implement a training program for teachers and staff at the school. As a result, teachers report fewer drop-outs, better attendance, and more participation in the classroom. To date, approximately 40 percent of the children have been integrated into the local school system. GEF will further support MCRC to continue the teacher training program, provide training on child protection laws, and help organize a local committee for child protection.

Navsarjan

Navsarjan, located in Ahmedabad, India, was established in 1988 to address caste-based discrimination. Navsarjan’s work has been well documented and is being used as a model in other states across India.

In 2000, Navsarjan founder, Martin Macwan, was awarded the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award for his work on behalf of Dalit and other discriminated peoples of India.

GEF will work with Navsarjan to:

• Fund three projects for the schools for Dalit children
• Strengthen 10 village libraries
• Create science labs in three primary schools for Dalit and tribal children
• Support 20 youth theater groups that are finalists in the state competition.

By doing so, GEF will help to create environments and opportunities where children can learn without fear and prejudice, boost their self-esteem and develop their leadership potential.

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Learn more about the GEF India Program

An Inspiring Journey: From Refugee to Scholar

By Alycia, a GEF Kenya scholar

One midnight in December, my phone rang. I decided to ignore it since it was late. If only I knew… Luckily, it rang again and I answered only to fi nd out that it was a call from the college of my dreams! Bryn Mawr College! I could hardly believe my ears when I was told I was accepted into Bryn Mawr!

Then came a scream, followed by tears of joy. Everybody in the house woke up. I broke the news to my parents who looked shocked by my scream. How joyful that night was! My sleep vanished because of too much excitement. My family started talking about it. “Mum, it feels all this is a dream…” I said to my mother. “No, it is real and it was bound to happen, for all that we have been through,” she replied.

Thanks to my parents’ sacrifices, my journey from primary school to secondary school to getting accepted into Bryn Mawr was a dream come true. I talked endlessly about everything that got me there. It turned into one long conversation that lasted until 4:00 am!

My mother is first and foremost the reason for everything I am today. She struggled beyond imagination to get us educated and disciplined. She is the reason why we are in Kenya, where I got the education that gave me a chance to get accepted into such a good school.

Understand that my family and I have been through difficult times. We changed from one school to the next, moved to different cities and sometimes different countries because we were fleeing a repressive regime in northern Africa. As refugees, this brought incredible drawbacks but I am happy that it did not discourage me. I went on with my studies, mostly in public schools and some informal schools. I learnt a lot in my high school: independence, hard work, leadership and responsibility. I did not have any plans for a specific college. I just wanted to listen, obey, and work hard at my studies.

Global Education Fund (GEF) was my primary driving force. GEF found me just when I needed it. They paid my school fees and nurtured me. My parents had more than enough burdens and I was worried about that, especially because I did not know where I was going with my education. Nobody in my family clearly explained to me the importance of education. My parents probably knew it was important but they could not elaborate as they have not been through it. All I remember is that I loved education and I enjoyed learning, and GEF gave me a whole different direction.

“So there are people out there who wanted to pay my school fees?”, I remember asking. “It must be important that I am in school.” Besides that, GEF enrolled us in leadership classes. “This must be important, too,” I thought. It sure proved to be successful.

The different intelligent people who spoke to us in the leadership trainings were inspirational as well as interactive. I learnt that it was vital for one to get education and become empowered, that hard work paid off, and that we ought to choose careers wisely. I picked up leadership skills. Gradually as classes went on, I learned to express myself more efficiently and gained social confidence in our gatherings. These skills helped me manage my studies and my leadership position in school as head girl.

Global Education Fund staff in Kenya helped me qualify for scholarships and get SAT support. I learned the importance of acquiring good writing and reading skills. I also learned about liberal arts education in America. It is amazing to learn to think for yourself, analyze situations, read and comprehend what is in between the lines, write argumentatively and convincingly among other skills. I grew more and more in love with liberal arts education the more I heard about it.

Suzanne Thomson, GEF Kenya Country Director, greatly contributed to my college preparation. She willingly volunteered to help improve my writing. We met as often as we could. I would write essays of different topics and she would read and comment on them where necessary. We had really interesting sessions. Besides the essays, Suzanne would give me pieces of advice and anything she felt I had to know either about my applications or just life in general. She is truly an inspiration to me.

I had so many papers to work on for my university applications and it would have been difficult and expensive if it weren’t for the GEF office. I chipped in a few shillings for the paper and ink to make copies of my applications. I am grateful for that. Besides my university applications, GEF was always there for me especially in acquiring my identification papers.

In addition, my sincere gratitude goes to Julie Shaw, former GEF Executive Director, for recommending me in my applications. Julie always believed in me even more than I believed in myself, “You are one great talented young woman and you will do well no matter what happens. You have us at your back.” She said this to me and always reminded me every time we met.

Truly, I have had GEF at my back. It was a long tedious journey. I am, however, delighted for the distance I have come and that my hard work paid off. My biggest drive and motivation has always been making my well wishers proud and then giving back. I will strive to positively change the lives of everyone I’ve reached out to as well as spread education and happiness to the poor, especially women and girls in need, in my community. Thank you!

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India Update: Innovative Teaching Models Strengthen Education in India

Earlier this year, several members of the Global Education Fund (GEF) team went to India to listen to leading educators, NGOs and funders and begin to gain an understanding of what is needed for children living in poverty there
to become better educated.While India has significant pockets of success, it is also home to millions of impoverished children. Bonded labor, forced early marriage for girls, disease and poverty are hard realities for many children.

GEF Scholarships Make Big Impact in Kenya

Global Education Fund sponsors a scholarship and leadership program serving students from several slum neighborhoods in Nairobi, Kenya. To promote literacy, Global Education Fund also provides books and exam preparation materials as well as library support to learning centers in Kenya.

Your support has helped over 100 scholars stay in school and participate in literacy, leadership and mentorship programs that will help them prepare to be leaders in their communities.

Get to Know Global Education Fund

At Global Education Fund, our mission is to improve the lives of children living in poverty through education. We believe that every child deserves the right to education and the opportunities that follow. By improving education we hope to empower children to build a stable livelihood and a better future for our students and their families. Learn more about our history, organization, team and approach. Or contact us for more information.

Country Update: Guatemala

In Guatemala, Global Education Fund is partnering with grassroots organizations working in rural villages on literacy and girls’ empowerment. Literacy rates are chronically low there, especially for rural indigenous girls. Thanks to your support, Global Education Fund is focused on literacy support through the provision of Spanish language books and teacher support for reading programs in local communities. As children become readers, they are more likely to stay in school and are exposed to possibilities beyond what they see every day in their communities.

Student Spotlight: Savita’s Story

In 2009, child labor mercenaries posing as education agents, convinced the parents of 12 year old Savita that they could provide her a computer education in Delhi and a good income for their family, with frequent visits home. Unfortunately, once Savita and several of her friends arrived in Delhi, they were forced into slavery as domestic servants.

When they protested, they were beaten and separated. Neither Savita’s family nor the girls received any income and the so-called “agency” pocketed all their earnings. Sadly, this type of child slavery is all too common in India, as well as in other developing countries.

Student Update: Meet Mardoqueo

Every day fifth-grader Mardoqueo visits the library that Global Education Fund, with your support, helped establish in his village in Chajul, Guatemala. He reads story books or completes research assignments with textbooks and educational materials unavailable outside of the library.

Like his father, Mardoqueo aspires to be an agronomist. He loves reading about animals and plants in other parts of the world. Mardoqueo was amazed to learn that much of the United States is dedicated to corn agriculture just like Chajul.

While library members have access to the internet for less than $1 per year, other students have to pay more than $1 per hour to use internet cafes, which are the only other alternative in Chajul!

Mardoqueo is well on his way to completing his studies and eventually becoming an agronomist – an expert on crops in this agricultural economy. He says that Global Education Fund is always welcome to visit. He’ll be sure to provide the tortillas!

In the News

Kenya Board Member Earns Graduate Degree

Salim Mohamed, a member of the GEF Kenya Board of Advisors, recently earned a Master’s Degree in International Development and Management. Behind this distinction is a remarkable story.

Mohamed is an orphan who grew up near, and later lived in Kibera, one of the largest, sprawling slums in the world — with over one million people, half of them children, in Nairobi, Kenya.

GEF Staffer on Loan to Kenya Program

Global Education Fund program officer Suzanne Mieko Thomson is spending a year in Nairobi, supporting the Global
Education Fund scholarship, leadership and literacy programs and working closely with the GEF Kenya Board of Advisors. She is helping us stay true to our value of listening to local leaders and building our programs through local partners. She is also becoming well-grounded in Kenya, its people, and culture, and having the opportunity to work with Kenyans to develop our programs on the ground. A mutually rewarding exchange!

Why I Give, Dave MacKenzie

WE’VE ALL HEARD IT — probably since our very first holiday seasons – it is far better to give than receive. But that’s hard to believe when you’re young (or waiting in line to see Santa). What I’ve found personally over the years is that I get an almost guilty pleasure in learning that just one of my actions is truly improving the life of someone else. Even if it’s in the form of a small, gentle gesture.

Having always tried to surround myself with like-minded individuals, I now feel as close as ever to the Global Education Fund. And to its mission of improving the lives of children living in poverty, through education. It has become increasingly clear to me that a major factor in breaking the cycle of poverty begins with education.

Make a difference through education for children living in poverty.

There are many ways to support GEF – from hosting a house party to donating online today. Explore the many ways that you can support our efforts to improve the lives of children living in poverty around the world through education. Click here to learn more.

Teachers are working with her to replace behaviors that were mostly self-interactions with new behaviors such as gradual social interaction with peers and using her sight to learn letters and numbers.

Sehreen’s progress the last few months has been steady and heartwarming. She is increasingly participating in class orally, can sing the ABC Song, recites some poems and rhymes, and can count to 10 independently. Recently, at the end of the school day, Sehreen skipped all the way from her classroom to her bus–all by herself!