Education India Project #39535

Mission: University

by The Good Shepherd Agricultural Mission

Project Report | Nov 6, 2023
The Mission is Expanding

By John Marshall | Project Leader

Telling the story of orphaned girls' education

Mission: University is growing!

From the first 8 students in 2019, to 30 more GSAM students over the next four years…to now more than 150 students worldwide, the idea that sparked Mission: University four years ago…the idea you helped launch…is literally changing the world today.

While Mission: University is strictly for the children of the Good Shepherd Agricultural Mission, a sister idea I call Teach Her offers orphaned girls anywhere the opportunity to go to college.

This past September, I had the honor of partnering with two Australian organizations, S. Group in Tasmania and Women for Change in Sydney, to enroll 100 new young women in higher education! The event held in Launceston was truly a global effort that will have far-reaching impact we may never fully calculate.

As 100 new students are educated and their futures are forever changed, this will alter families and communities for generations to come. I’m including a few pictures of the fundraiser down under that raised enough to cover the first two years of what will be a five-year undertaking. To learn more about what we’re calling the Teach Her 100 project, click here.

Thank you for believing in these young people and for being the spark that lit the fire that is now growing around the globe.

With the year rapidly coming to an end, I encourage anyone who’d like to support the Mission: University work in general or one student’s education in particular to get involved. We have four new GSAM children graduating from 12^th grade this year who will be ready to start college next fall. It’s never too early to change the future!

Whether you’re a one-time donor or a complete sponsor for a student, we could not do this vital powerful work without you. Thanks for all your support.

Volunteers helping on the big night.

Rosey from the Mission: University program.

Celebrating to support a good cause.

Coming together for 100 new students!

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Jul 11, 2023
A Chance to Make a Bigger Splash

By John Marshall | Project Leader

Jul 5, 2023
Another Year Complete

By John Marshall | Project Leader

Jackie ready to take on the world.

The Mission: University program was started in the fall of 2019 with 8 students. Now, nearly four years later, nearly 30 students are getting the opportunity at higher education that otherwise never would have existed. Without your support and encouragement, none of this would be possible.

This update will introduce you to a few faces in the program, one in her first year and one just graduating. These two students are full of potential that you are helping to unlock. Thank you as always for your support!

Jackie, Bachelor of Commerce - Year 3 of 3

Commerce is a serious degree and honors in International Finance and Accounting with Association of Chartered Certified Accountants brings it up to a whole new level! You know Jackie must be smart to be able to handle such a tough degree like this, just look at the subjects he's currently studying:

Advanced Financial Management
Business Analysis
Indirect Tax Laws
Corporate Reports
Project Management
Investment Management

Advanced Financial Management is Jackie's favorite subject. "It is more project based", he shared over the phone. "It involves loads of calculations related to long term projects & investments. It's ultimately about determining what are good investments and what are not."

In a class of 189 students Jackie is in the top few students, "Most of the subjects are in English," he shared. "And that gives me a huge advantage over others. They're scared to talk and struggle to understand." We're always proud of the great English skills our kids learn at home.

Jackie's considering a career as a Certified Chartered Accountant - it's a tough route, expensive but an excellent career choice. Even after this degree is over there is a lot of further study and exams before that can happen.

Jackie is actually already trading stocks online, but he wanted to be clear that he is just, "having a little fun." When asked if he lost money or made money Jackie replied, "Oh no. I definitely came out on top!" Watch out, Wallstreet - Jackie could be coming for you soon!

Lisa, General Nursing & Midwifery - Year 1 of 3!

When Lisa decided she wanted to be a nurse (just like her older sister Basanti), we knew just the college for her - and it was only 10 minutes away: Swastik School of Nursing. Now, any school that has the name "Swastik" in it might be alarming to a westerner, but here in India the swastika represents well-being, good fortune and prosperity. Actually, Swastik Hospital, which runs the nursing college was the first hospital to give free/discounted care to our large family back in 2004 and we consider them part of the family.

"I love being so close to the farm," Lisa shared. "However sometimes I wish I wasn't in Khatema. There are no parks here, and there is not much to do when I have an afternoon off." Thankfully Lisa does have some good friends at college already, and one of them is her roommate, Shristi. "Shristi is very nice, we both speak English well so it is easy for us to communicate. Her family is from Nainital, in the mountains."

So far Lisa has been really enjoying her studies. She has five major subjects: English, Anatomy & Physiology, Community Nursing, Psychology, and Fundamentals of Nursing - the latter one being her favorite. "In Fundamentals of Nursing we work in a big lab, there are lots of experiments and we practice techniques on dummies and models. It's funny how you think you know something, like why we wash our hands, but then you find out the technical reasons and it all suddenly makes even more sense!" Lisa had plenty more to share... "In the Anatomy Lab there are human skeletons as well as models of hearts and lungs that we learn with. I've been learning how to give intramuscular injections, take blood pressure and insert a cannula - soon we will be doing practicals in the hospital and actually performing on people!"

We're so happy that Lisa is doing well, and we're even happier she's so close to home... even if there are no parks nearby.

Lisa in her nursing uniform

At the doorway of new possibilities

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