Gyriadda Girls Participate in a Girls Empowerment Workshop 2/12

One of those communities, St. Kizito, Gyriadda faced several struggles over the past two years, which initially had delayed the building of their school. A major challenge was the discovery of a defilement case right before their project was to begin. JLMC found out through its Girl Power Program that the nursery school teacher was sexually abusing his girl students, and had been for several years. When the community members learned of the abuse, they felt they had no recourse since corruption is so rampant within the local justice system and the teacher was so well known within the community.

Another struggle facing the community has been impoverishment. Because of the high poverty in the area, the community members struggled to gather local resources: sand, stones, and clay bricks required as a co-investment by JLMC to construct the school building. In cases like Gyriadda, JLMC must exercise patience and provide encouragement as communities together find solutions to issues that delay their progress. Community contributions are critical to deep development; it builds community ownership over a project, ensuring the community will maintain the project well into the future.

With the help of JLMC, the Gyriadda community has overcome many of their struggles one by one and has made great progress in 2011. Through JLMC’s Project Justice, a human rights workshop was held for community members to promote the rights of women and children and to prevent more cases of sexual abuse. As a result of the workshop, the community was successful in chasing the teacher involved in the defilement out of town with the help of local police.

As of November 2011, the construction of the school is back on track. The roof has just been added to the building, which will have three classrooms and an office for the principal. JLMC also contributed to the construction of a latrine for teachers and students.

Skilled Labourers Work to Add Roofing to St. Kizito, Gyriadda’s School Building 2/12

Teachers, school board members and PTA members received two professional development workshops to improve the learning environment of the school and to help increase student performance.

63 girls participated in three Girl Power workshops to increase their capacities for self-empowerment, leadership potential and social survival skills. When asked during the first Girl Power workshop of 2012, girls reported no cases of defilement since the sensitization campaign. A major success!

Yet, despite these magnificent accomplishments, the Gyriadda community, as well as the four other school communities sponsored by JLMC, still have many challenges to overcome. Many of the schools lack chairs and desks, critical for a conducive learning environment. Instructional materials are also limited in many of the schools.

Access to health care and health education is limited, and income generation activities in the schools to support extracurricular activities like drama and sports is nonexistent.

In 2012, JLMC has exciting plans for its Universal Education Program, which hopes to address the aforementioned challenges.

JLMC will

• Provide furniture and instructional resources to improve learning environments
• Provide the opportunity for schools to generate income  to give students lunch and opportunities for extracurricular activities
• Increase student and teacher’s ability to deal with relevant health issues in their communities
• Increase the capacity of school management committees to manage operations, solve community problems and supervise education through capacity building workshops.
• Increase the capacity of teachers to deliver well planned lessons
• Ensure that schools meet national standards as laid out by Department of Education

However, JLMC cannot reach its goals without your support. Here are ways you can help:

For only $1,000 you can  furnish an entire classroom, so that children are not seated on the floor during lessons.

For only $100 you can help fund a much needed professional development workshop for teachers and school boards.

For only $200 you can help fund dental hygiene outreach.

Donate today to further improve the lives of the thousands of children that JLMC serves through its Project Universal Education.

Nearly 30% of her neighbors were infected with HIV, she was surrounded by dozens of orphans, and she was going to a school that had no books and barely a roof on the structure.

Recognizing her intelligence and drive, Just Like My Child Foundation, through the generous help of one donor, Jim K., began sponsoring Nalubombwe at one of the best elementary schools in Uganda.

Flash forward four years: Nalubombwe excelled so far in school and scored so well on her end of term exams that she was just accepted into THE best high school in all of Uganda.

Left to Right: Nalubombwe’s mother, Namagembe Topista, Nalubombwe Josephine, Tessa Davis

It’s almost incomprehensible to the residents of her village, Kikoiiro that a girl born into such a dim reality could be walking into the brightest future possible.

Thank you Nalubombwe for all of your very hard work to make this happen!

And thank you, Jim, for believing that the fire of knowledge can change the world. To be like Jim click here.

Please start a dialogue with us by commenting on the stories. We want to know what you think and what’s important to you!

The Nike Foundation and The Girl Effect’s The Clock is Ticking campaign is based on this truth and for the past few years has been reaching out to the world through their beautiful and inspiring animated video. This one is my favorite because the message is clear and honest – to the point.  One day I hope Just Like My Child can work with The Girl Effect and promote the Girl Power Project together.

One of the projects the Just Like My Child Foundation has undertaken is to implement a sponsorship program we call the Mandela Project — the focus is to create leaders who can in turn move their country forward.. It costs less than $1700 a year to send a child to one of the best boarding schools in Uganda. This includes tuition, room and board, and uniforms, health care for the child and the family, vitamin supplementation, transportation to and from school, canteen money, and incidental expenses.

According to Sister Ernestine Akulu, founder of the Bishop Asili Hospital in rural Uganda, sending our first student, Nyangoma Rachel to school will most likely save her life. Many students in this village who are not in school will become sexually active as early as 12-years old. With over 30% of the adult population testing positive for HIV, this is certainly a life-threatening behavior.

Since Nyangoma Rachel received her sponsorship, the Just Like My Child Foundation has focused on building schools rather than sending individual children to select schools making it possible for hundreds of children (boys and girls) to attend school. Previously, it  would have been nearly impossible for these children to go to a safe school. We are focused on building safe schools, educational facilities, empowerment workshops, and trainings to reach more Ugandans. The tremendous efforts have been paying off and now we have so many Nyangoma Rachel’s we almost cannot keep count.

It takes so little to help these children achieve their dream and with your help we can help many more children make their dream a reality. It doesn’t take much; click here to see the different ways you can contribute.

Here are a few comments made by the girls:

• I gained self Confidence
• I discovered ways of building my self esteem.
• I learnt how to make wise decisions.
• With disappointments you can still move on.
• I unlearned the mentality that men are stronger than women

Don’t get me wrong we still have so much work that needs to be done, but this a really wonderful first step.

Monica’s report states the following:

“The emphasis in the training is put on the social survival skills since the young women in Uganda are living in an environment that does not respect their rights and thus the girl child is very vulnerable. For example, 86.9 percent of rape victims in Uganda are between the ages of 9 and 17 and Uganda has the highest percentage of teenage pregnancy in sub Saharan Africa. Therefore the empowerment training is spot on as it aims to empower the young women to protect themselves in the different environment, which do not respect their rights.

“Namumira Primary Schools is one of the schools that has benefited from Just Like My Child who put up classroom structures to ensure that both girls and boys get access to education in a clean and safe learning environment. JLMC went further to introduce the girl power project where 40 girls benefited form the mentoring training in 2010.  The two-day training focused on social survival skills, the power of social intelligence, peer pressure, communication skills, puberty and the menstruation cycle.

“Therefore a year after the training, Just Like My Child returned to the school to conduct an evaluation. This exercise was meant to identify the emerging issues, check on the progress of the girls in their individual lives and how they have been able to use the knowledge that they acquired in the two-day training.

“… the young women from the follow-up empowerment workshops have gained self-confidence, learned to deal with troubling situations, built self esteem, learned to choose friends wisely, unlearned the mentality that men are stronger than women, how to make a wise decisions, and that their facial expressions communicate what they felt. Overall, the analysis of the entire process of the evaluation proved significant and the trainees had ‘acquired knowledge about the various issues facilitated to them and thus were able to add value to their own lives.’ “

Learn more about The Girl Power Project by clicking here. To make your contribution to empower girls and women in Uganda, donate here.

We had spent a good part of the day organizing the school supplies that my son had raised money for at his school. Today, we met with 50 orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) who haven’t been able to go to school because they don’t own a pencil or a notebook. My son gave them each a package of supplies to get them started in the new school term. Throughout the week, we’ll be visiting the schools we have built and delivering the balance of the learning materials we collected and hauled over from the States.

Our newest team member, Tara Hixson, who completed her Peace Corps service in Thailand and has been a teacher for several years, was really moved by the linkages created by my son’s school helping to raise money for schools a world away.

To begin with, my shy little guy had to really get out of his own skin to raise nearly $3000 in a short period of time – he even had to be the “circle time” guest at the preschool class and pick up a jar of spare change from them. He was regaled with dozens of questions from curious little minds – WAY out of his comfort zone.

More than one child at his school approached me, together with their parents, to give me change from their piggybank. The parents were so grateful to have the opportunity to share a broader worldview with their child in a real and tangible way.

The administration of the school is insisting that my son return with a full PowerPoint presentation so that the whole school can feel connected to the effort.

Now, here in Uganda, the interconnectedness of children comes into full relief. They’re not just getting school supplies, they’re learning about what’s happening on the other side of the world, creating lasting relationships through letters and drawings, and maybe Skype! I’ll keep you updated on the fun throughout the week.

We’re off to a running start with raising money for school supplies. But we’ve just finished an assessment of the inventory of the government schools we’ve rebuilt and realized that some schools (entire schools) are functioning with just one or two textbooks!

I just can’t put up with that – we as an organization can’t tolerate it – and as a planet that depends on the mind expansion of each individual for our own survival, we must take advantage of the opportunity to help where we can. It will take only $50 per child or $3000 per class to make a school fully functioning for years to come. And we’ve got 17 classrooms to supply. Imagine that for just $50, you could supply materials for a child year, after year, after year. Please help us continue to make dreams come true for so many children. Just $50 will help children who don’t even own a pencil today create a future of peace, independence, better health and understanding for themselves, their children, and our world.

Find out more by clicking here.

If it means the Oryang family, including their extended family orphaned by unimaginable events, goes hungry for a week so the children can stay in school, then those bellies will be uncomfortable but their minds will be fed. Both parents are firm believers in the power of education and are dedicated to ensuring knowledge does not escape youthful minds. Beatrice was once overheard saying, “We will not eat if it means we can’t pay for school fees!” And she meant it. She has become a role model and an inspiration to budding educators.

According to the World Bank and EFA Global Monitoring Report, “There is good evidence to suggest that the quality of education – as measured by test scores – has an influence upon the speed with which societies can become richer and the extent to which individuals can improve their own productivity and incomes” (2007, par. 6). Furthermore, “research shows high private returns to primary education, as long as it is measured in terms of attainment of basic skills and not years in spent in schools” (par. 7).

Envision the children of Uganda with bellies and minds full. This reality of this vision can lift entire communities up and out of the cycle of poverty. Just Like My Child glows when these youthful minds shine and when people like Ben and Beatrice relentlessly encourage education. Support our partnership with leaders like Ben and Beatrice and help us feed AND educate our future. Take a moment and check out how much we have accomplished by visiting our Project Universal Education page. After you have check that out find out how you can support Just Like My Child here!

The news of Bin Laden’s death has captured world attention, and it’s made me wonder, as civilians, how can we create our own counter-terrorism efforts? Here’s my story:

A few weeks ago I told my eight-year-old boy that I was going back to Uganda in May to work “on the ground”. Usually, he’s pretty “matter of fact” about it because it gives him extra time with Daddy at home and I’m gone and back in a flash. This time though, he got thoughtful and seemed sad, “I didn’t know you were going back to Africa,” he said.

My heart sunk a little bit as it usually does whenever I feel his disappointment, so in the next breath I said, “You can come with me, and then we’ll be together.” Now this is a conversation that’s been going on for several years. You see, I’ve raised this boy on images and video of the issues on the ground in Uganda. He’s spent afternoons sitting on my lap as I sort through photos of the children we’ve grown to love, and their parents whose burden we have begun to lighten.

He’s heard many stories about how deadly malaria is, and he’s even raised money at his school to buy insecticide-treated bed nets. Understandably, he’s been a little nervous about coming with me to Uganda and has always said “Maybe next time” when I’ve invited him in the past!

So when he answered this time, “Yes, I want to come with you, Mama,” it was evident that he had carefully thought it through and he knew he was ready…

My love for my son inspired me to start Just Like My Child Foundation five years ago to help mothers and children who were in desperately vulnerable circumstances. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to keep my child alive, healthy, and educated and I wanted to do whatever I could to help other mothers do the same for their children. And, as a civilian, there’s no better counter-terrorism approach than to educate and feed the minds of children who are in situations that we just wouldn’t stand for in this country. As my hero Bono once said, “If you don’t do it for the humanity, then do it for the security.”

I’ve witnessed extreme poverty create extreme desperation. Either “we” get there first with education and a way to help families be self-sufficient, or terrorists do with hate education and big payments to families when one of their children becomes a suicide bomber.

I told my son about the many schools we have built in Uganda and how the government of Uganda doesn’t have the money to support the schools with basic necessities like desks, chairs, books, pencils, paper, chalk, etc. As a result, many of the students barely own a pencil, let alone a place to sit and study. If a child doesn’t have the right tools, it’s nearly impossible for them to learn. And when they’re not educated, the desperation just deepens because there’s no possibility for a compelling future.

My son is very committed to bringing as much as he can to equip these schools. So from now through May 12 when we leave, he’s hoping to raise $5,000 in donations to bring school supplies to children who dream about having what they need to learn and thrive.

Can you help him?

Nothing’s going to make him feel better than to know he can actually make a difference (it will also help him stop worrying about malaria). And, we’ll all be doing our part to bring our values of education and justice to children half a world away.

Visit www.JustLikeMyChild.com/donate to make a donation directly to his campaign.

There’s a drop-down menu that says “Where Would You Like Your Money to Go”

Select “School Supplies”.

or

Send a check directly to:
Just Like My Child Foundation, PO Box 22025, San Diego, CA 92122

Can you imagine if we in the U.S. were in this situation? Sure we have serious issues with our public schools, including school districts increasing a classroom size from 22 to 30 students per teacher, failing schools, and low-quality teachers. Often we are asked to help out with supplies, and of course there are all those PTA “events” to raise funds for the school. But what if your only available choice was one school and that school happened to have over 100 students per class per teacher? AND your child had to share a desk with at least a dozen other students, with no books, resources, or even chalk to use on the cracked black board? As much as parents at the rural Ugandan schools try to close the chasm of need, most often the demands of the children cannot be met.

What would you do if this were happening to your child or at your child’s school? Just Like My Child has learned, after we’ve helped build six school structures, that in order for our schools to be more than just a building, we need to help fill the gap. Our first school, The Children’s Academy of the Collective Heart, is a private school which we have helped stock with amazing teachers, an extraordinarily talented Headmistress, and enough books and supplies so that every child can learn.

We are now leveraging the enormous brain trust we have at that school to help all of the public schools we have rebuilt. We are conducting teacher trainings and supporting the formation of parent teacher associations that help the schools maintain a clear and compelling future for extraordinary education. In addition, we are raising awareness and funds so that children in all of our schools can have books and other educational resources.

Just Like My Child wants every child in Uganda to have a safe place to learn, happy and well-trained educators, and the materials required for a promising future.

Through Just Like My Child’s “Project Universal Education” thousands of children will attend clean, bright, and safe schools that they previously would never have been able to access. Just $100 helps provide a Ugandan student with his or her own desk, school supplies, and textbooks for the entire year? You can help support our efforts by making a tax deductible gift here.

Ben Oryang is the driving force behind Just Like My Child’s Universal Education Program. A program that offers rural Ugandan communities a chance to take education into their own hands and build self-sustaining schools and education systems. Lending a hand to the parents, the teachers, and surrounding communities, Project Universal Education provides the necessary tools to operate and manage schools without further investment from outside their home country. Another key element to the program ensures gender equity, teacher education and training, and monitoring of student progress.

Ben and his wife, Beatrice (she’s a professor at the teacher’s college, too), believe in Just Like My Child’s mission and have become influential in their community, inspiring educators to become visionary leaders and mentors to the children. Just Like My Child’s first school would not have become what it is today without Ben’s contributions. The Children’s Academy for the Collective Heart has provided classrooms and a stable learning environment for hundreds of children since opening early 2010.

I am not just writing this to talk about a man doing good somewhere in Africa. This is about a man doing what he knows is right. Both he and his wife inspire entire communities to rise up, work together, and build a future for their children. With so little he and his wife have created so much. Between the two of them they have very little income for their own immediate family and yet when a distant relative dies Ben and Beatrice take in their orphaned family members. Beatrice would rather her family go without food than have her children, both maternal and adopted, go without an education. Both parents understand the value of a skilled and inquisitive child. Caring for so many children is a huge sacrifice that I’m not sure many people would make.

The work that Ben and Beatrice are doing is changing the future of so many teachers, students and communities. So little provides so much to the schools in rural Uganda. A small tax-deductible investment, as little as even $10, can support a school by suppling school books and furniture.  Be a Ben or a Beatrice and inspire a community of educators and children today!

Imagine yourself as a mother in Uganda; your reality is very different.  You have nothing to offer your children in the way of financial resources, a solid education, or a community that supports making unimaginable dreams come true.  What do you do? What can you do?

If you are like many parents in Uganda you live on less than $1 a day.  You lose family members to preventable diseases and you barely have resources to sustain your life, let alone any additional resources to contribute to creating a successful future for your children.  So what do you do when you see natural intelligence and talent in your child and you don’t know how to foster it?

Nalubombwe Josephine is just one of those children.  She has a bright light and incredible desire to learn and expand beyond her circumstances.  That is why she was chosen as one of our sponsorship recipients in our Mandela Project.

This program is inspired by the thought that one individual can change a country, a continent, or the destiny of the planet.  We sponsor education programs for children whose futures look dim, but whose intelligence burns brightly.  If it were not for this program, Nalubombwe Josephine would likely be dead now.  She was born into a miserable environment, one most of us could never imagine for ourselves, not to mention our children.  Had she continued along the path of the other children in her community, she wouldn’t have a future at all, let alone a promising one.

The best news we just received was that Nalubombwe got into Namugongo, one of the very best schools in the entire country!  It is not easy to get accepted and many students who do attend, graduate and get scholarships to go to college.

Left to right Nalubombwe Josephine, Namata Josephine, Nyangoma Racheal and Nankubuge Veronica

Just Like My Child’s is able to cover the cost of tuition, room and board, uniforms, health care, nutritional supplements, and transportation for each of our sponsored children for less than $1,700 per year.  Imagine the only thing standing in the way of your child living to see their adulthood and getting a quality education was $1,700 per year!

Funding for The Mandela Project comes directly from Just Like My Child Foundation donors and sponsors. Sponsorship recipients agree to bring their knowledge and education back to their people in the form of community service and staff education. By sowing individual seeds of leadership our sponsorship recipients are spreading the investment deep into their communities.

If you share Just Like My Child’s passion for providing children with a promising future and contributing to their communities please support our specialized programs by making a donation.