On January 10th, we welcomed the team of 11 LEAP Future Leader student-teachers and 1 LEAP Faculty member to San Francisco on our month-long Internship Exchange Program!

Welcoming LEAP/TWA Interns from South Africa

On January 10th, we welcomed the team of 11 LEAP Future Leader student-teachers and 1 LEAP Faculty member to San Francisco on our month-long Internship Exchange Program!

Give to TWA through the Combined Federal Program

It is the season for giving through the Combined Federal Campaign. If you are an employee of the federal government or military, please consider a workplace donation to support Teach With Africa’s education exchange programs in the USA and South Africa. CFC#41700.

See our membership page at Aid for Africa for more details.

Stories from the Field: Trust Without Wavering

By Kim Worthy
2011 & 2012 TWA Fellow from Howard University Middle School of Math and Science, Washington, D.C.

Last year I took a LEAP into the unknown, spending two months in South Africa…but not just in South Africa, in the LEAP Science and Maths School in South Africa. LEAP is not just a school, it is a movement. It is a movement towards self-awareness, self-reliance and self-determination; a movement towards consciousness and emotional and intellectual awareness; a movement towards community responsibility and community development; a movement towards reclaiming culture, history, and of course, Ubuntu….humanity.  After two months of working with the faculty, staff and students of LEAP 1 and LEAP 2, I left South Africa with a deep awareness of my intentions, my behaviors, my thoughts, my feelings, and my “unique ways.” I knew where they came from, where I learned them, and how they impacted my life, my family’s lives, my students’ lives, and everyone else in my life. The honest reflections were difficult to swallow, but because of the “trust that was birthed from the honesty” we shared, and because of the promise of “NO JUDGMENT,” I was able to receive the reflections. Being open to these honest reflections, I was able to sit with the feelings that came with them, and learn from them. I was inspired to liberate myself from my habits and behaviors that I was previously unaware of, which had impacted others and myself. My experience in LEAP last year made me feel free, whole, normal, and human, and I was inspired to change and grow.

When I learned that I would be going back to LEAP as a 2012 Teach With Africa Teacher Training Fellow, I felt fortunate and thrilled. I waited all school year to fly back to South Africa to see everyone I deeply value at LEAP, and to return to the place that inspires me to “share as much as possible” and to change. I yearned to be with the LEAP family who SEES me, FEELS me, SUPPORTS me, and ACCEPTS me without conditions; I yearned to be around others who are just as open to feeling human. I wanted to reflect with others who genuinely care, offer my reflections, receive their honest reflections, and simply experience humanity for the second time in my life. My intention was to return to give all that I could give, and to feel human again. I gave my word that I would return to share, and I waited for my return with great anticipation.

Highlights from the 6th Annual Gala

Did you miss the 6th Annual Gala? Well some of the highlights of the night include: Sipho Mpongo’s photography slideshow, speeches from James Malope, Asanda Sigigaba and Susan Deemer.  Read all about them below.

Sipho Mpongo’s Photography Slideshow

Sipho Mpongo is an ambitious young photographer from the township of Langa who graduated from LEAP in 2012 and is now studying on full-tuition scholarship at the prestigious Cape Town School of Photography. We are honored to present some of Sipho’s breathtaking photography in tonight’s video presentation. The international photography community is beginning to take notice of Sipho’s talent – he has been invited to show his work twice in prestigious Cape Town exhibitions alongside professional photographers, even though he is not yet 20 years old.

Sipho’s goal in photographing Langa is to show “the richness of music, of talent – I want to capture every moment. I want to tell the world the story of Langa at street level.”  We are grateful to Sipho for sharing his art and passion with our guests in order to bring a glimpse of life in Langa and other townships where LEAP and TWA serve.

Sipho has been mentored in digital media arts by TWA Faculty-in-Residence and Board Member, Karen Page over the past four years. You can view more of his work at http://www.siphompongo.blogspot.com.

If you are interested in purchasing high-quality collector-quality prints of Sipho’s work, please contact karenkpage@gmail.com. All proceeds will go directly to Sipho in support of his photography studies.

James Malope, Faculty at LEAP 4

James is currently teaching grade 9s and 10s English and Life Orientation. After completing matric at the LEAP School in 2007 and studying at the University of the Western Cape, he decided to join the LEAP team after realizing that SA schools are lacking teachers who had commitment and passion for this important profession. Working as part of the LEAP school has helped him realize the realities that our societies face. James is proud to be part of the people who are pushing for change in the world.

Asanda Sigigaba, Faculty at LEAP 5

Asanda began studying at LEAP Science and Maths School in Cape Town in 2004 with the first class of students, graduating in 2007.  Her passion as a teacher is to work with students so they can make sense of their lives, discover who they are together with other learners, and realize that there’s more to their situations, community and province — that they can dream too. After graduating from the University of South Africa (UNISA) she started teaching at LEAP 5 in Limpopo last year. She teaches English and General Studies to grade 9s and Life Orientation to grade 9s and 10s.

Susan Deemer, TWA Faculty-in-Residence

Susan is a Nationally Certified master teacher with more than 18 years of classroom teaching experience. At an early age, Susan was inspired by her own teachers and decided to “pay it forward” – she continues to be sustained by throwing herself into her work and putting children first. Since 1999 she has worked at Katherine Delmar Burke School in San Francisco as a 7th and 8th grade science teacher. Throughout that time she has had numerous roles, including Science department facilitator, Co-Chair of the Curriculum Council, and Softball Coach. Susan was a Faculty-in-Residence teacher trainer at LEAP in Cape Town, South Africa and speaks tonight about this outward journey that resulted in an inward one as well.

$210,000 raised at our 6th Annual Gala!

We are thrilled to announce that our 6^th Annual Gala on March 2^nd raised a whopping $210,000+ for our Global Teacher Institute education exchange and teacher training programs in the US and South Africa! Thank you to all who attended, contributed, volunteered, and sponsored this wonderful celebration.

Congratulations to our 2013 Teach With Africa Spirit Award winners, Dr. Robert and Karen Kahn, for their dedication and passionate commitment to our work. Gala guests were inspired by our three “superhero” guest speaker teachers from South Africa and San Francisco: Asanda Sigigaba, James Malope, and Susan Deemer.

From a modest goal 6 years ago to raise just $12,000 to send 2 teachers to South Africa, to today’s incredible gala results, we are awed by this success and honored by your continued support.  Thank you for celebrating with us and for joining us in this journey to provide opportunities for transformation through education.

Stories from the Field: Jessica’s Extraordinary Mission

By Jessica Boualavong Tirtanadi, 2012 TWA Fellow from Town School for Boys, San Francisco, CA

Check out Jessica’s one minute video trailer that recaps her summer in South Africa!