Progress: 2016-2017 at a Glance

Accomplishments

Provision of school fees, living stipends, school supplies, and tutoring to 43 students.
We provided supplemental tutoring in French and Mathematics to all students. Because our students come from rural and impoverished backgrounds, they generally had inferior instruction compared to their classmates.
Six of our twelve senior students passed the Baccalaurat exam to finish high school. Nationwide, approximately 50% of students who take this exam are able to pass.
73% of our students advanced to the next grade level.
Funding: We have some donations, but we struggle to pay for the students each year.

The school in Andrainjato is overcrowded, and some students must sit on the floor because there are insufficient desks.
Many of our students are plagued with family health problems, and sometimes they use some of their stipends to pay for medicine or food for sick family members. In addition, sometimes they must spend weekends caring for sick family members.
Most students cannot afford to go the university. The government offers a stipend of approximately $10.00 per month for university students, but this is insufficient to cover their expenses.
Despite the very small percentage of students who finish high school, a lack of economic opportunity within the country can make it difficult for those who do finish to find employment.

Provision of school fees, living stipends, school supplies, and tutoring to 28 students
Dramatic increase in student rate of success from previous school year: to 93% from 60%!
We were able to provide French tutoring to all students during the 2014-2015 year, which we were not able to do during our first year. Students studying in Ambalavao (the district capital) were also able to receive tutoring in math, physics, natural science, Malagasy, and English.
We have a vastly improved system of distribution, collection, and verification of information in applications for the 2015-2016 year. As of July 27, 2015, more than one hundred applications had already been distributed in three communities, and by the end of August we should have an additional hundred distributed in the remaining three communities.
Funding: We have had several new donations. We are exploring additional fundraising options.

The school in Andrainjato is overcrowded, and some students must sit on the floor because there are insufficient desks.
Many of our students are plagued with family health problems, and sometimes they use some of their stipends to pay for medicine or food for sick family members. In addition, sometimes they must spend weekends caring for sick family members.
We recently learned that the students in one town are forced to pay bribes to local police for “protection.” Luckily, a normal bribe is only about fifty cents and five cups of rice.
Security is a problem for many of these students. While walking around with $20 may sound modest to Americans, it is a substantial amount of money in Madagascar.