"Girls in the Spotlight: A lesson from Rwanda"

http://kristof.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/21/girls-in-the-spotlight-a-lesson-from-rwanda/

I won't usually join in on the blog discussions--I'll only read them, but I decided to post since no one else has. Are you all waiting to see what the first person writes? Don't wait! Let your voice be heard; say something; challenge us with your ideas. I'll start the ball rolling, but know that mine is not a model or exemplar, just an example.

This article challenged my notion of "community". I care deeply about education in my community and in the lives of those in my community--but this piece has me rethining just what the borders or parameters of my community are. As the founders of GIR (Initiative in Rwanda)found themselves "discussing the high-quality education that their own children were receiving" they decided that others should be privvy to the same quality education. They decided to start a boarding school for girls in Rwanda.

Part of what is so compelling about this piece is the support or data Ruxin includes to illustrate the urgency to educate girls. (ex: "Africa could save the lives of as many as 1.8 million children under five annually. One year of female schooling reduces fertility by 10 percent, and each additional year of schooling per 1,000 women helps prevent two maternal deaths. In Rwanda, however, less than 13 percent of girls attend secondary school".) Given all this information, it is difficult to limit my idea of community to the confines of New Haven--and just one school in New Haven! I'm not sure what this means for me in terms of action, but I am inspired by this article, (and by the women it highlights), to at least think about change and communal responsibility in a greater way.

~Ms. J