Ruaha Secondary School
Iringa, Tanzania

Building Capacity at the Grassroots

Ruaha Secondary School was founded in 1986 to address the dire educational needs of Tanzania, the fourth poorest nation in the world. Many schools lack textbooks, floors, windows and basic educational equipment. The average teacher salary is $81/month. Ruaha started as a humble day school serving a few students and has now grown to serve over 750 boarding students. To encourage education of girls, the school provides basic housing and three meals a day; currently two thirds of its students are females.

Ruaha Secondary School is becoming well known nationally for the following accomplishments:

• High quality boarding program for girls
• Excellent discipline of students without corporal punishment
• Strong academic results, 35th out of 611 schools nationally
• Computer classes for all students
• An attractive, clean, cheerful and functional physical layout
• Cleanliness of the environment
• An innovative moral education class
• Productive self-reliance projects to enhance learning

Development Plan

Since 2005, Ruaha has been steadily implementing its 5 year development plan. To develop Ruaha’s site Master Plan, volunteer Architect Ben Hufford of Yost, Grube, Hall Architectural firm in Portland, Oregon, spent three weeks on site to deeply understand the topography of the land, the school's priorities and needs and develop the working blueprint for all future construction.

Phase one of the development plan called for the construction of a dormitory housing 140 boys who up to that day had to live in sub-standard rented rooms outside the school compound. This phase also included the construction of a full kitchen and food storage facility, a borehole, and a badly needed generator, all to be completed by September of 2007.

In support of Ruaha's technical education program, a team of Microsoft certified trainers spent three weeks on site providing Train-the-Trainer instructions to selected Ruaha's teachers. Working with two Ruaha teachers, the team also outlined a certification program for “Office Management & Administration.” This year, Ruaha will continue with the next phase of their ambitious development plan which Mona Foundation has committed to sup- port, including scholarships, the construction of two urgently needed science labs and another dormitory for boys.

Needs for 2007

• $55,545 Science laboratories
• $13,636 Lab equipment & furniture
• $87,164 Boys' dor mitory & furniture
• $13,000 Scholarships
• $16,000 Generator (provided)
• $36,364 Vehicles

How You Can Help

Please contact us or send your tax-deductible contributions to:

Mona Foundation
218 Main Street, Suite 404
Kirkland, WA 98033
(425) 743-4550
Email: monafoundation@monafoundation.org
Online: Contribute Online with your Credit Card Here

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