Another find: Karanga Vocational Center (Why it is so important to spend time on the ground here)

We want to create a better learning atmosphere for the teachers and students in Kilimahewa without jumping into a building project. As we said in our previous post –let’s get the teaching right first. Therefore, we're simply planning to “spruce up” our school - scrape the walls, give the two rooms a fresh coat of paint and new blackboards (constructed on the actual walls by applying a special concrete with a blackboard surface) and purchase individual desks.

The need for desks led us to the nearby vocational school. Begun by the Catholic diocese of Moshi with start-up funding assistance from the government, the highly successful and impressive Karanga Vocational School is now self-sustaining because of the quality of their products. What began in one room now consists of a furniture building operation, a sewing and tailoring room, a new auto mechanic garage and other training programs. A dorm also has been added for students to board. Visitors can quickly appreciate that the teachers in this school have been able to institute a positive environment of focused learning.

We have chosen Karanga's students to build 30 to 40 sturdy desks for our school – (78,000 TSH or $53 per desk), thereby supporting good education in Tanzania in multiple ways. Donations to EdPowerment support worthwhile efforts such as these.