From Tariro’s director: Highlights from the 2010 Annual Report

A group of Tariro students at Chembira school, in Glen Norah

Between finishing my dissertation, being hired as a faculty member at Eastman School of Music, and moving across the country, it’s taken me a long time to finish editing this year’s annual report!  It is finally completed, and in the next few posts, I’m going to share some of the highlights of Tariro’s 2010 Annual Report with you. I’ll begin with highlights from our educational sponsorship program for girls in Zimbabwean communities affected by HIV/AIDS, which represents the central and most important aspect of our work.  In subsequent posts, I’ll proceed to expand upon the pyscho-social support programs we provide for our sponsored students, as well as some of the highlights of the work done by our many volunteers in the United States, in support of our programs in Zimbabwe.

In 2010, Tariro provided comprehensive education support for 57 students, including 8 students enrolled in the last years of primary school, 46 students enrolled in high school, and 3 students attending university.  This included 15 new students who were recruited into our programs to replace students who had finished high school in 2009.  For all of our sponsored students, we covered educational expenses including tuition, student ID cards, uniforms, and school supplies.

Tariro's director Jennifer Kyker with Pauline K., Tariro's first university graduate!

Tariro is especially proud of the following accomplishments in 2010:

• We celebrated our first student to graduate from the University of Zimbabwe, Pauline K.

• We have committed to continue sponsoring a second student, Tatenda C., who passed her Advanced level exams and was accepted as a first-year student at the University of Zimbabwe.  In addition to covering the costs of her education, Tariro has provided her with career guidance counseling and additional advocacy with University administration, enabling her to select an appropriate course of study at the UZ.

• Our students collectively maintained a 98% attendance rate at school!  This incredibly high attendance rate was made possible in part by our monthly distribution of free sanitaryware to all sponsored students in need.

• Six of our students won awards for academic excellence.

• 16 Tariro students completed high school and wrote their Ordinary or “O” level exams in 2010; of these 16 students, 5 passed with scores high enough to qualify for Advanced or “A” level study, in preparation for attending university.

• Finally, Tariro raised over $2,000 to send our student Noleen C., who was born with spina bifida and is confined to a wheelchair, to St. Giles school, where she is now receiving exceptional care and making good progress.

The dramatic results Tariro is able to achieve with our sponsored students are a result of intensive case management, including outreach activities at local schools, and regular monitoring of student progress via school and home visits.  In addition, we provide a range of support services for our sponsored students, such as a lending library, our annual empowerment camp, and our traditional music and dance program.  Highlights from these psycho-social support programs will
be the emphasis of my next post.

As we enter the fall fundraising season, please consider joining Tariro by making a donation, enabling us to continue making such a tremendous difference in the lives of our sponsored students.  Thank you for your support!