» Imagine the courage it took our two Senior 5 representatives to get on that plane headed to the USA on August 9th. Neither Witness nor Celeste had ever been out of Rwanda, let alone on a plane. So off they went, with their parents’ blessings and, we hoped, thorough directions about how to navigate the Amsterdam airport where they would have to change planes for their final leg to Boston. ... read more
» With one month remaining in the academic year, I reflect back on my last ten months at GGAST and am overcome with the settling sense of gratitude. Gratitude for the opportunity to leave everything I have ever known and experience something new, gratitude to be learning and growing within a new life and culture, but most importantly the gratitude to be a part of something as significant and s... read more
» I came to the Gashora Girls Academy in January 2011 as a Peace Corps Volunteer, but it wasn’t my first time working with the school. Before its construction was finished, I met Peter Thorp when my Program Director sent out an e-mail about a summer break tutoring program for English in the South Eastern village of Gashora. The program was free and exclusively for girls. I was always very inte... read more
» Lessons Learned by Lisa Rico Falling in love with 90 young women was not in my thoughts when I volunteered to teach at Gashora Girls Academy of Science and Technology (GGAST) this summer. I am not a teacher. I’m an artist who happens to love Rwanda. I paint women and children survivors of war, most of who are from Rwanda. So when asked if I would consider teaching art at t... read more
» Congratulations to Gashora Girls Academy Headmaster Peter Thorp for receiving a special commendation from the San Francisco Board of Supervisors on August 2, 2011. Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi offered the commendation to “welcome home an outstanding San Francisco educator.” Peter, who was back in the States during GGA’s semester break, was lauded for making “a... read more
» We are consistently amazed by the creative ways in which people have come together in support of the Gashora Girls Academy. Kim in Utah organized hundreds of people from church groups, families, and friends to tie the quilts that cover the beds in the dormitories. The volunteers came from many ages, genders, and ethnicities, all with the desire to make a difference for girls in Rwanda.... read more
» Rwanda Girls Initiative is thrilled to welcome Jim Bullock as our summer business development consultant. He is headed to Rwanda this August to help RGI in a key aspect of our model: developing sustainable sources of funding for the Gashora Girls Academy. He'll be looking into how much food RGI can grow on the school grounds in support of the school, while evaluating other potentia... read more