Play Hard, Work Hard

Recently I realized that all I post about is food and parties and adventures. Maybe you're all thinking I'm here on an extended vacation on US taxpayers' money? NOT SO! Here is what I've been up to in the less-adventurous part of my life...

Kinder's House Banock
Run by an NGO called AFFAMIR, Kinder's House is a private bilingual maternal and primary school with about 400 students (slightly more girls than boys). They have an incredibly high exam pass rate and an incredibly low drop out rate, making this school a success story in the Cameroonian education system. Still, they could use some help...

• I have taught sexual health and puberty classes to the oldest group of students, aged 11-13. Sex is a taboo subject in this country and most parents never discuss the changes of puberty or how to stay healthy to their kids, so it's important that they learn it in school. 
• I am helping to organize their library and start arts & games classes. The mandatory curriculum demands memorization rather than encouraging critical or creative thinking, so teaching kids young to read, do art, and play games might encourage that spirit. Unfortunately, it's really difficult to get art supplies for kids or children's books in French.
• I am going to paint a mural: a map of the world and a selection of the universal children's rights. Unlike in the US, children are free labor; they work in the fields, they sell at the market, they clean their own classrooms and schools at the end of the day. They should know that they have the right to food, to security, to clean water, to health - that they're not just petit workers. 
• I'm helping the school administration to get more latrines built. They currently have 2 latrines for 400 kids, and as you can imagine, that doesn't end well! 

Lycée Bansoa-Mbri

This is a public high school right by my house in Bansoa Chefferie. They have about 1100 students, but many students drop out every year due to poverty, early pregnancy, and other problems. 

• I'm running a girl's empowerment club called Club FORTES that teaches sexual health and life skills. We've talked about subjects like goal-setting, role models, decision-making, reproductive anatomy and pregnancy. It seems to be pretty popular; 60 girls showed up last week, and they fight to keep the boys out of the room! 
• I'm continuing A2Empowerment, a girl's education scholarship program run by a returned peace corps volunteer and her friend. Many of the girls who applied have lost a parent and are struggling to pay for school fees, books, notebooks, the uniform, and other school supplies. This program tries to promote girls' empowerment by keeping the young ladies in school and educated! (If you're interested, you can donate here.)

Research Institute for Development 

Located in Baffoussam (the regional capital of the West) RIDEV is a local NGO that works to create strong youth, strong women, and strong communities.  

• I'm helping the RIDEV employees like Anne to run an after-school program called Youth For Change. This program aims to encourage civic/community engagement in youth by giving them the knowledge (on leadership, health, environment, and issues facing youth) and the skills (public speaking, goal setting and planning, and self confidence) necessary to create change in their own communities. As part of the program, they actually pick one of the issues covered in class and then plan and implement a project to address it in some way. This is one of the programs I am most excited about, and next year I am hoping to expand it to other high schools in the area! (If you're interested in helping out, you can donate here.)
• This summer, we will put on the second edition of Camp FORTES to train youth women as peer educators. It's a six day sleepover camp that brings together girls from different villages, some of whom would never have the opportunity leave their home towns. 

Peace Corps

Volunteers have a lot of opportunities to get involved in running Peace Corps programs in Cameroon! I just joined the Youth Development Steering Committee. We meet about 3 times a year in the capital Yaounde. We are currently improving the training program and resources for the next group of YD volunteers who will arrive at the end of May.