|
Feature Story:
In her "spare" volunteer time, Sierra Club Senior Regional Representative, Elise Annunziata, sits on the Board of a non-profit organization called Women's Global Education Project (www.womensglobal.org). As a former Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal, West Africa, Elise remains interested and involved in global issues of education, equity and opportunity for women and girls in developing countries.  Elise and friends in Senegal Women's Global Education Project provides access to education and develops training programs that empower women and girls to build better lives for themselves and foster equitable and sustainable communities. WGEP focuses specifically on rural girls and communities, where girls' education is not a priority, and works in partnership with a local in-country organization, a highly motivated association of school teachers, to implement the program. Through the "Sisters to School Program," which began in Senegal in 2003, WGEP has awarded scholarships for 12 rural girls to enter primary school (K-6), implemented an after-school tutoring program for over 50 girls, raised awareness on the importance of girl's education in over 10 rural villages and developed a secondary education scholarships program for girls grades 7-12. This fall, WGEP will award 10 secondary education scholarships to girls in Senegal and launch their Sisters to School program in Kenya, East Africa. In December 2004, Elise used her vacation time from Sierra Club to travel back to Senegal to monitor progress of WGEP's program with their local partner and to meet all of the scholarship recipients. In her report to the Board upon her return, she enthusiastically reported that the Sisters to School program is meeting its objectives and making an invaluable difference in every girl's and family's life. Elise comments of her recent trip, "It was so incredibly rewarding and encouraging to see these girls in school, taking the lead in class and becoming true role models for other girls. Without this opportunity, I'm confident that most of them would have remained in their villages, caring for younger children, cooking, doing hard field labor, and likely being married and/or becoming mothers at age of 15 and younger. This is a life-changing chance for young girls."
Up to Top |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
