College education for 10 talented students in BiH

BOSANA FOUNDATION

Scholarship and Personal Development Program

Quarterly Report

April-June 2020

Executive Summary:

As we head into the second part of the year, we want to recognize all of our amazing supporters for the enormous contributions they have made over these last few months. We exceeded our COVID-19 fundraiser goals aimed to help our former students and, on top of that, we received a microgrant from GlobalGiving.

Bosana would like to express gratitude for your unrelenting dedication to ensuring our students receive support, especially during this unprecedented time. The majority of the world spent these months in their homes and yet, we have so many noteworthy updates for you.  I am incredibly proud to share the news about how our students have spent their spring quarter.

Students and Program Update:

These past three months have been unforeseen, presenting our students with countless personal and professional challenges that might have stopped many. However, Bosana students overcame them, continuing to adapt and carrying out their academic requirements. One silver lining over the spring quarter was seeing how our students came together to quickly move to remote teaching and learning and help each other succeed in this new environment. It has been a difficult semester and now we already have several students that are nearing graduation and some that have graduated.

We are steadfast in our dedication to our students. In response to the global pandemic, Bosana organized a fundraiser for our former students through the GlobalGiving platform.  Our goal was to help at least three former Bosana students who were most affected by COVID-19 by raising $3,000. In only a few days, we were able to raise a total of $15,834. This meant that we were now able to help many more students. We surveyed all of our former students in order to group them and divide the funds.  We are pleased to report that with your support, we were able to help all 14 students who needed additional support.

It was obvious to us that our current students and their families would be affected with the changes brought on by this pandemic. That is why we decided to raise the monthly scholarship from 150 BAM to 300 BAM during the months of April, May, and June. That way we would help our students and their parents who lost their jobs.

Additional funds were secured through GlobalGiving from both an anonymous corporate donor and an anonymous cohort of individuals to provide more hardship micro-grants to the community. Bosana was among the lucky organizations selected to receive an additional $1,000 micro-grant from GlobalGiving. This is an unrestricted donation to Bosana Foundation, which we will use to further help our current and former Bosana students who have been most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Kickstart your Career” workshop was tailored in 2019 specifically for BOSANA students with a focus on creating their professional biographies, resumes, cover letters, interview skills, time management, working in teams and other skills relevant in the today’s job market. Last year, eleven of Bosana students participated in the pilot program and this year we anticipated that sixteen of our graduating students would participate in the program. Due to COVID-19, we had to switch from in-person to online training. The students have reported remarkable results and satisfaction with the two-week online training.

Highlights of the quarter:

We are excited to report all these inspiring news about our students:

• Stipan is from Mostar and he studies medicine. He has received two Dean's Awards for Academic Excellence. Each year, we also recognize Bosana's Best Student with a monetary award according to his/her grades, involvement with the Foundation, and their volunteer hours. Stipan was selected four times for this Award. During COVID-19 lock down, Stipan volunteered at the 'Health Center' and 'Crisis Headquarters' in Mostar. His task was to inform citizens about the COVID-19 virus, explaining steps in preventing the virus and giving advice on how to say healthy.

• Suncica currently studies Political Science at the University of Sarajevo. The center for youth “Ivan Pavao II” with Suncica’s help has donated 6 computers to the daily center “Udruzenje Zemlja djece”, in which our student Pelka volunteers, and also to one pupil from Bosanska Otoka.

• Pelka is enrolled at the Educational-rehabilitation faculty at the University in Tuzla. She has been active in the non-governmental sector for many years making positive changes in her local community and beyond. During this time of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pelka was involved as a volunteer helping senior citizens by going to grocery stores and paying their bills since elderly over 65 years of age were not allowed to leave their homes.

• On behalf of the International Solidarity Forum, EMMAUS our student Nejra distributed preliminary packages of social vulnerability to elderly in the city of Zenica.

• Our student Emir studies medicine in Sarajevo, but has spent these past few months in his hometown. Aside from his academic engagement, he volunteers in the Red Cross in Kljuc where he is involved in a wide range of activities. In June, through this organization Emir collected food which was then distributed to those who needed it the most.

• Adi M. received recognition for being the best student of his generation with highest GPA at University of Mostar once again. Adi’s major is health studies and nursing.

• Benjamin past his final exam in June at the Educational-Rehabilitation University in Tuzla, which was the last milestone in completing all his requirements towards a bachelor degree. He is now preparing for the next phase of his academic life.

We are proud that our students are not only dedicated to their studies, but are also making a difference through their volunteer work.

“Students for Humanity” project is still thriving.  Bosana students are all setting aside a part of their monthly scholarship funds for their own humanitarian projects.  Bosana’s former students are also part of this project.

Students used their funds to support three projects during spring quarter. We are so proud of our students' continuous support to families and individuals in need.

• One of the former Bosana students suggested helping Almin, student from Zenica since  he found out that this student was not able to cover his dorm room expenses for March. Bosana students covered the cost of the dorm room as well as some additional living expenses.

• In April, students helped an unemployed elderly man who lives with his daughter and wife in Tuzla. He was never able to hold a stable job working only seasonal construction jobs. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic he was not able to go to work and lost all his potential earnings. Bosana students decided to donate through their project to help the family.

• Students have also helped one family from Zivinice with funds for food and other basic necessities.