Updates from the Field - Make College an Option for 70 Congo (DRC) Students
Updates from the FieldUpdates from the Field (or Progress Reports) on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.com by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
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Recent Updates from the Field
Report from a Student
By Albert Lokasola - Co-founder, Djolu Technical College, August 11, 2009 01:13 PM
We have received the following letter from a third year student in Environment and Sustainable Development at Djolu Technical College (also called Institut Supérieur de Développement Rurale). Construction has begun on the dormitory for visiting professors referenced in the letter below. Some students are helping to pay off their tuition by providing donated labor on the construction project. We hope to complete the building by December, with thanks to our friends and supporters.
“Ladies and Gentlemen in the USA:
We have the honor of sharing with you some of our experiences at the "Superior Institute of Rural Development” at Djolu.
One important thing is that we would like to thank Mr. Albert Lokasola and our permanent faculty for founding this College. Since the creation of our district of Tshuapa, there has never been an institute of higher education here.
Concerning our track record, among the graduates of the first class, we have at the present time:
-- A territorial administrator responsible for finance.
-- We also have school principals
-- And some general administrators.
Now we ask you, our friends from the outside, to support Mr. Albert Lokasola in his initiative and to help us fund the construction of our building for the students, housing for the visiting professors, and help us obtain electricity, without which we are hampered in all our evening academic activities.
In brief, we hope you realize that our professors come to teach courses in our institution to deepen our knowledge of science and to exchange ideas.
Thank you.
Bibiche Miemetko-Mka
A student at ISDR at Djolu”
“Ladies and Gentlemen in the USA:
We have the honor of sharing with you some of our experiences at the "Superior Institute of Rural Development” at Djolu.
One important thing is that we would like to thank Mr. Albert Lokasola and our permanent faculty for founding this College. Since the creation of our district of Tshuapa, there has never been an institute of higher education here.
Concerning our track record, among the graduates of the first class, we have at the present time:
-- A territorial administrator responsible for finance.
-- We also have school principals
-- And some general administrators.
Now we ask you, our friends from the outside, to support Mr. Albert Lokasola in his initiative and to help us fund the construction of our building for the students, housing for the visiting professors, and help us obtain electricity, without which we are hampered in all our evening academic activities.
In brief, we hope you realize that our professors come to teach courses in our institution to deepen our knowledge of science and to exchange ideas.
Thank you.
Bibiche Miemetko-Mka
A student at ISDR at Djolu”
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A Recent Visit to Djolu
By Albert Lokasola - Co-founder, Djolu Technical College, April 27, 2009 11:15 AM
I have just returned from Djolu to Kisangani where I regain access to the internet to send you this update on the Djolu Technical College. While I was there , I taught a 45-hour course called “Utilisations des ressources naturelles” [use, environmental impacts, politics and regulation of renewable and nonrenewable resources] for the nine third-year students nearing graduation. They are now preparing to defend their theses in May. Two of these students are young women.
None of the students have ever used a computer, although they are taught a class about computer technology. We are currently seeking grant funding to realize our dreams of establishing an internet connection for the college this year. Donations through Global Giving Foundation will help us greatly toward this important goal.
The students wrote letters for me to email to the college’s supporters. One student, Litonga Longandza, wrote:
“Dear friends,
Because of financial problems, the three-year cycle to get the undergraduate degree took me five years. Because of the poverty of my family, ISDR [Djolu Technical College] comes like a dream to me, an opportunity to study at home. After three years of training, I am not the same person than before. I am more capable now, and I feel able to take on important responsibilities in local development efforts. May our Sister Citizens in Falls Church, Virginia and elsewhere across the United States accept my thanks for having opened my eyes. Here we have some difficulties, but any school newly created has problems. Especially equipment problems. Once again, with outstretched hands, receive my thankings!”
With best regards to our friends in the USA,
Albert Lokasola
None of the students have ever used a computer, although they are taught a class about computer technology. We are currently seeking grant funding to realize our dreams of establishing an internet connection for the college this year. Donations through Global Giving Foundation will help us greatly toward this important goal.
The students wrote letters for me to email to the college’s supporters. One student, Litonga Longandza, wrote:
“Dear friends,
Because of financial problems, the three-year cycle to get the undergraduate degree took me five years. Because of the poverty of my family, ISDR [Djolu Technical College] comes like a dream to me, an opportunity to study at home. After three years of training, I am not the same person than before. I am more capable now, and I feel able to take on important responsibilities in local development efforts. May our Sister Citizens in Falls Church, Virginia and elsewhere across the United States accept my thanks for having opened my eyes. Here we have some difficulties, but any school newly created has problems. Especially equipment problems. Once again, with outstretched hands, receive my thankings!”
With best regards to our friends in the USA,
Albert Lokasola
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Conclusion of the Academic Year
By Albert Lokasola - Co-founder, Djolu Technical College, February 05, 2009 11:03 AM
The first session of exams at Djolu Technical College has concluded. The final session of exams for the 2008 school year has been delayed and will begin in February, assuming we can get professors there in time from Kisangani. To date, 32 students from years one through three have successfully completed their exams, in one of the two majors offered by the college, Rural Techniques or Environment and Sustainable Development.
Graduating students have traveled to Kisangani on foot or by bicycle (530 km away) over the holidays to use computers to type their theses, since there are no computers at Djolu Technical College, and to purchase suitable clothing for the upcoming graduation ceremony.
Communications between the Kisangani liaison office and Djolu Technical College have been difficult of late since the shortwave radio station at the Kisangani liaison office was destroyed by lightning, and has not yet been replaced for lack of funds.
Eleven new candidates are waiting to register for the forthcoming academic year. Three young men and four young women from Kokolopori received $200 scholarships from Vie Sauvage this past year. We hope to expand the number of scholarships available in the coming year.
Internships were provided at three different sites this past year:
-- Kokolopori Bonobo Reserve
-- The Central Office of the Djolu Health Zone
-- The Djolu Territory administrative office
Part of the funds, so urgently needed, that we received through the Global Giving website are being disbursed this month to help pay professors' salaries. The entire school community will be grateful to hear about the support we are receiving from generous individuals abroad, as we prepare to begin another new academic year in 2009.
Graduating students have traveled to Kisangani on foot or by bicycle (530 km away) over the holidays to use computers to type their theses, since there are no computers at Djolu Technical College, and to purchase suitable clothing for the upcoming graduation ceremony.
Communications between the Kisangani liaison office and Djolu Technical College have been difficult of late since the shortwave radio station at the Kisangani liaison office was destroyed by lightning, and has not yet been replaced for lack of funds.
Eleven new candidates are waiting to register for the forthcoming academic year. Three young men and four young women from Kokolopori received $200 scholarships from Vie Sauvage this past year. We hope to expand the number of scholarships available in the coming year.
Internships were provided at three different sites this past year:
-- Kokolopori Bonobo Reserve
-- The Central Office of the Djolu Health Zone
-- The Djolu Territory administrative office
Part of the funds, so urgently needed, that we received through the Global Giving website are being disbursed this month to help pay professors' salaries. The entire school community will be grateful to hear about the support we are receiving from generous individuals abroad, as we prepare to begin another new academic year in 2009.
Want to support this project's continued work?
Greetings from Djolu Technical College!
By Albert Lokasola - Co-founder, Djolu Technical College, December 17, 2008 05:56 PM
I am pleased to announce that we have just concluded our sixth academic year, which started on January 5th, 2008. The first set of exams has just been concluded and now the teachers and students are on their way home for the holiday. The second session of exams will take place on January 15 after which the graduation ceremony will be held. If they all pass, seven students will receive a diploma in Rural Techniques and six others in Environment and Sustainable Development.
The total duration of the academic year was 44 weeks. The first semester had 22 weeks and the second semester the same. In addition to the generous support of donors through the Global Giving Foundation, the Djolu Technical College benefits from donations and assistance from the surrounding rural communities and notables of the Tshuapa Region. The Vice-governor of Tshuapa, who visited Djolu lately, requested more information about the College, as a special mark of attention.
We are very proud of what we have been able to accomplish with so little money for these dedicated students. But we couldn’t have done it without friends like you, and we are deeply grateful for your support.
The total duration of the academic year was 44 weeks. The first semester had 22 weeks and the second semester the same. In addition to the generous support of donors through the Global Giving Foundation, the Djolu Technical College benefits from donations and assistance from the surrounding rural communities and notables of the Tshuapa Region. The Vice-governor of Tshuapa, who visited Djolu lately, requested more information about the College, as a special mark of attention.
We are very proud of what we have been able to accomplish with so little money for these dedicated students. But we couldn’t have done it without friends like you, and we are deeply grateful for your support.
Want to support this project's continued work?
Heart-felt Thanks!
By Albert Lokasola - Co-founder, Djolu Technical College, November 15, 2008 01:02 PM
Dear Friends and Supporters,
On behalf of the students and teachers at the Djolu Technical College, I am sending heart-felt thanks for your generous support through GlobalGiving. I am especially touched by the out-pouring of support for the scholarship fund in tribute to my sister Véronique’s memory. She would have been honored to be remembered in this way that makes an education possible for so many bright young men and women like her.
The College gives our people hope for the future of our community, our forests, and our regional economy. So does the knowledge that we have friends in America who care about that future.
On behalf of the students and teachers at the Djolu Technical College, I am sending heart-felt thanks for your generous support through GlobalGiving. I am especially touched by the out-pouring of support for the scholarship fund in tribute to my sister Véronique’s memory. She would have been honored to be remembered in this way that makes an education possible for so many bright young men and women like her.
The College gives our people hope for the future of our community, our forests, and our regional economy. So does the knowledge that we have friends in America who care about that future.
