Our visit with Usha and the community proved to be an extremely moving and inspiring time for us. We had time to meet with the community members, both men and women, and speak with them about how their lives have changed since receiving skills training and employment as a direct result of this project.

The change was palpable.  The community itself has a different look and feel- it is bright and joyful. Kids are playing, vendors are selling, the majority of homes are now made of concrete instead of tin, and most of all, the people seem to have a sense of confidence that was missing last visit.

When we had first visited with the community in 2007, there was very little activity. Most of the women had no jobs and were housewives or domestic workers making no salary, or an average salary of 300-800 rupees a month. ($5-$15USD) All the women in the community have since received skills training in markets such as garment and sewing, computer skills, catering and cooking, making ceramic teeth, and milk processing. Early results show that all of these women are either employed by a business, working as a group or collective, or self-employed, and have increased their livelihood to as much as $56USD per month.

More importantly, the women expressed a feeling of happiness that they said they did not have prior to the job training program. They have their own income now and do not have to rely on their husbands. They also have confidence and the ability to pursue other interests if they please.

The men also received training if they were interested, and many have received gainful employment as a result, including government jobs which were never accessible prior to this training.

As we continue to evaluate this grant we will post more results. Have a look at the photos
on our media page which clearly tell this transformative story.

• To learn about the event, visit the event website.
• And to inquire about how to get an invitation, send a note through our contact page!

Jubilee Project, a non-profit which focuses on creating videos that insprire change, will capture your stories about small acts of kindness that have changed your life and feature them in an impactful video. The video along with the final artwork complete with fingerprints will be  featured in an art exhibition late July and posted online to this website, more details to come.

• See more about this Givology event here and here.

• Increase school enrollment for girls who no longer have to walk 15+ miles per day in search of water
• Decrease in miscarriages, which were common because of the long searches for water
• Decrease in intestinal and digestive issues due to unclean water
• Increase in livestock farming with water trough systems
• The simple benefits of clean clothes
• Increased time for other initiatives

In 2008, MNSF gave a $6,500 grant to the Samburu Project for the purchase of a generator, helping to complete a drip irrigation farming system for the Milimani Women’s group. Recently we had time to look at some of the benefits of this grant and the results are astounding!  In fact, MNSF recently awarded The Samburu Project  a second grant of $16,500 to implement a second farming initiative. Some of the results from the  first farming initiative include:

• 150,000 individuals now have access to locally grown, fresh produce for the first time
• The women’s agricultural group produces food for their families, regardless of rainfall
• Income for farming group increased from $6,000 USD annually to approximately $52,000 USD annually
• Women now employ workers, including their husbands, at their farm
• The group is making no-interest loans available to themselves and other community members for business  development

As one of the most arid regions in Kenya, this gift of water is life-giving to the Samburu People, and this new grant will enable them to continue to sustainably develop and thrive as they work to improve the community in which they live.

Launched in March 2008 by students at the University of Pennsylvania, Givology is an internet online giving marketplace for education that leverages small dollar donations to support grassroots projects and student scholarships in the developing world. Learn more about Givology at givology.com!

• What: Givology “10,000 for 10 Schools” Auction Benefit for Educati­on
• When: Friday, March 11th, 2011, 7-10pm
• Where: Hudson Bar at the Hudson Hotel (356 West 58th Street, between 8th and 9th Ave, NYC)

** General Admission: FREE with donations of your choice suggested and RSVP requested*

• Visit http://www.10schools.org/rsvp.html to *RSVP* and donate online.

Also, read a previous NY Times article about Valentino here.

KIPP Philadelphia Schools (KPS) is a network of high-performing, public charter schools that enable students to succeed in all levels of K-12 education and college, giving them the freedom to shape their futures and positively affect their communities. The mission of KIPP Philadelphia Charter School is to develop the character, knowledge, and skills of their students to prepare them for top-quality high schools, colleges and the competitive world beyond.  KIPP Philadelphia Charter School is part of a nationwide network of 67 KIPP Schools in 19 states and the District of Columbia.

Research shows that there is a significant and persistent achievement gap in our country between white students and their African-American and Hispanic peers. As explained on the Education Week website:

While National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results have shown that, over time, black and Hispanic students have made great strides in narrowing the breach that separates them from their white peers, that progress seems to have come to a halt since the mid-1980s. For example, in 2003, while 39 percent of white students scored at the proficient level or higher on the 4th grade reading exam portion NAEP, only 12 percent of black students and 14 percent of Hispanic students did so. Forty-two percent of white fourth graders scored at the proficient level or above on the mathematics exam compared with just 10 percent of black students and 15 percent of Hispanic students (U.S.
Department of Education, 2003).

KIPP schools were created in the early 1990s with the idea that four years of intense schooling from grades five through eight could reverse these effects.  And KIPP has had great success in this effort, both nationally and locally. KIPP’s success in educating low income, minority students has been documented on 60 Minutes, The Oprah Winfrey Show and PBS.

The achievement gap is demonstrated even during the first years of a child’s educational journey, but what begins as a modest gap widens as the years progress.  In an effort to work strategically toward an even greater reduction of the achievement gap in their schools, KIPP Philadelphia will follow in the footsteps of other KIPP regions, and start the first KIPP Philadelphia Elementary School.

• To learn more about KIPP Philadelphia, please visit here.

Teach For America aims to end educational inequity-the reality that in our country where a child is born determines his or her educational outcomes and life prospects. They are working with a great sense of urgency to build the movement to eliminate educational inequity by enlisting our nation’s most promising future leaders in the effort; encouraging them to engage their skills in classrooms as teachers for the most underserved students and by inspiring them to think about how they might deepen their impact via leadership positions in public education. Their vision is that one day, all children in this nation will have the opportunity to attain an excellent education.

Teach For America Mid-Atlantic is playing a critical role in improving schools and communities. A corps of nearly 350 of the nation’s top recent college graduates is currently working in underserved schools across Philadelphia, Camden and Wilmington to ensure that students facing the challenges of poverty are given the educational opportunities they deserve. Their alumni are leaders in the classroom, in education more broadly, and across all sectors. Together, they are making educational equity a reality in Philadelphia, Camden and Wilmington.

• Learn more about Teach For America here.