Reports from Arlington Academy of Hope, Inc.

Mar 16, 2015

Jan-Mar 2015: News from the Village

By Maureen Dugan - Executive Director

Donated girls mentoring t-shirts proved popular

Great news! The results of the Primary Leaving Exam (PLE) taken last Dec. are in, and all of the 7th graders at Arlington Academy of Hope (AAH)'s school in Uganda have passed -- most scoring in the highest category. This made them eligible to attend some of the best secondary schools in the country. Once again, AAH's school is one of the top scoring schools in the country.

In Uganda, the PLE is a national exam at the end of primary school to determine who is permitted to continue on to secondary school, so it's a very important milestone. This is a real testament to our hardworking teachers, staff, students, their supportive families, and our wonderful sponsors and supporters! Our top female student was even the top female student in the district!

Equally exciting, we're thrilled to announce that a local school that we have assisted under our outreach program also had all their seventh graders pass the PLE. While Bulobi school had less top scoring grades, they all passed for the first time in the school's history! This means more will have a chance to go to secondary school. Lasell and Marymount have much to do with this success as both have sent numerous groups of teachers adn students which helped improve educational quality at Bulobi. PLE scores at other of our outreach schools are steadily improving, demonstrating that adopting AAH's educational model is possible and is effective.

Our primary, secondary, and university students are at school now. Meet a special one: Moureen, recipient of our 2015 TOMS Award. This award recognizes academic achievement and community service because giving back is important to us. Moureen is 13 yrs old and went to a public school. She scored high on the PLE and helped out at school. She wants to become a doctor and help sick people in her community one day. She hopes to help other girls to finish school and live better lives. She encourages neighbors to take care of their health by bathing regularly, brushing their teeth, and washing their clothes. At home, she helps her parents care for 15 siblings and by fetching water, sweeping, and cooking.

Thank you so much for your interest and support! We simply couldn't do it without you. Oh, and check out the cover story on a recent trip to AAH programs by co-founder John Wanda, Board member Dean Scribner, and some very dedicated donors!

Cover story on recent AAH trip

Kelly, GlobalGiving's East Africa Rep., visited

2015 TOMS Scholar

Links:

cover story on AAH

Dec 15, 2014

Arlington Academy of Hope (AAH): Oct-Dec report

By Maureen Dugan - Executive Director

Give a life saving gift of education to a child!

At Arlington Academy of Hope's (AAH) operations in rural Uganda, we've been busy!

Enabling children to remain in school requires good health care. The FIMRC health clinic at our school and our clinic in Bupoto have been active.

At our Health Clinic in Bupoto, we're fortunate to have former intern Moussa return to put in place a new computer system which will make it easier to track patient information at the busy clinic. Prior to this, the clinic kept paper records for more than 10,000 a year. This was cumbersome and staff intensive. Also visiting the clinic was Dr. Peter from the UK, who developed the sytem. He has been kind enough to provide us the software and a laptop -- we are very grateful. We hope to upgrade the solar energy at the clinic, to keep the new computers and and everything else running! Staff are being trained in the new system, and it will be interesting for the students volunteering there on the break to be able to see a modern system in operation. The clinic serves as a trainining site for students interested in a career in health care, as many secondary and university volunteer there over school breaks, weekends, or holidays. There are also several health care scholarships for secondary school students. At AAH, we believe there are many paths to a child's success and our focus in on helping them gain an education, job skills, and experience which will improve their employment prospects once they finish school. We also had a six-week volunteer at the school looking at other training opportunities and programs which could help the children.

At the primary school, we had an increased emphasis on STEM subjects this year. This year, we were fortunate to have over 70 volunteers from the US, Canada, the UK, Germany, and more come volunteer at the school. They are able to help the teachers by, for example, working with individual students and small groups who need a little extra help. They also bring new techniques and energy to the classroom, so we keep improving. (Want a life-changing experience? Consider volunteering with AAH in Uganda! Email info@aahuganda.org)

The school year ended last week, and our students, teachers, and staff are on a well deserved school break.

At our primary school, seventh graders spent the last several months studying long days and weekends to prepare to take the highly competitive national Primary Leaving Examination (PLE) which determines whether students graduate primary school and continue on to secondary school (high school).

We also assisted a number of poor local schools to prepare their seventh graders for the PLE as well. They took the PLE recently and are awaiting results, which determine if and where they will go on to secondaty school. Once the seventh graders hear results, they only have a few short weeks to report to secondary school. There's a reason the AAH school is in the top 1% of schools nationwide -- the teachers and the students work incredibly hard!

As our seventh graders prepared to leave primary school, we just finished selecting the new first grade class that will start late Jan-Feb when the new school year begins. They are enthusiastic, energetic, and beaming from ear to ear! We can only take a portion of those who apply, and families camped out for days on the road to the school just for a chance to intervew for a slot in first grade. The schools's success has changed many parents' minds about the value of an education, and how it can change lives for the student and his or her family.

Our second group of secondary school graduates are keeping busy at university.

Thank you for making it possible for the children to go to school. You are truly tansforming lives and giving them a real chance for a better future.

Looking for a meaningful holiday gift this year? Consider making a donation to AAH on someone's behalf and we'll send them an e-card! Email info@aahuganda.org for more details.

Grace, on a Teen Service Trip, reads with a child

AAH held a race in Uganda and in the US in Nov.

Sangya, from Univ of Pitt, tutored students

AAH donated math supplies to local schools

Thank you for making a child's education possible!

Links:

AAH's website

Sep 19, 2014

Arlington Academy of Hope: Sept 2014

By Maureen Dugan - Executive Director

students hard at work!

While June-August is traditionally school vacation in the U.S., Ugandan schools operate on a 3 term system with smaller breaks throughout the year. So over the past few months, our primary school student and teachers have been hard at work studying and learning! Teachers were assisted by many volunteers from a number of countries, who helped in the classroom, tutored small groups, and helped students needing a bit more help to keep pace with their classmates.

July marked our tenth anniverary...10 years of transformation and achievement. In the village, we celebrated by doing community service and helping at nearby schools. The health clinic hosted special events, including cancer screenings. There was also a big event where students showcased their musical and dancing talents.

The annual Reading Challenge was also kicked off, where students read at least 50 books and solve math challenges as well. The school and schoolyard is full of readers!

We were honored to host a National Conference on improving school performance. The Government asked to have the event at our school, and we were delighted to have over 100 visitors for the event.

At the moment, our seventh graders are studying extra hard for the all-important Primary Leaving Exam (PLA) which determines whether they will be able to continue on the secondary school. For the past 7 years, we have had a near 100% graduation rate! We also want students from area schools to do well, so we share practice materials with over 20 schools. The data shows that the area schools we have assisted through various outreach activities are among the most improved in terms of PLE results, so it is worth the effort.

A huge thank you to our supporters who make all this possible!

A student's artwork for the 10th Anniversary!

Community service by volunteers and students

Happy to be at school

Links:

Ugandan newspaper "The Monitor" article on top primary schools

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