2016

 

November 2016

On Sunday, November 12 2016, the Saint Thomas More Chapel in New Haven, CT, held a fundraiser for the Bertozzi Initiative. The new funds got the Initiative through almost the end of the 2017 educational year.

​

2015-2016 Update

Report from Kinshasa:

 

Locations for the work of the Bertozzi Initiative include Christ the King, Sainte Elisabeth, and Saint Irenaeus in Kinshasa, with a total of ten teachers. The location of Sainte Angele closed, but will move to the Nandwey school complex in the same territory, a beautiful location and infrastructure, so as not to disrupt the teaching for the children in that area.

 

The initiative would like to open additional locations outside of Inongo if there is funding: Commune of Mont-Ngafula, Commune of Limete, Commune of Matete, Municipality of the N/Sele, Kalamu Commune, Commune of Ngiri Ngirir.

 

To continue the education in Kinshasa, the staff in Kinshasa has asked for 

• marketing materials for distribution in Kinshasa

• a post office box

• a small laptop, phone, and camera for each location

• to increase the number of teachers in each site

​

Update from the Saint Iraneus site

 

The initiative was well-received here this year, beginning activities in November. After running for 24 weeks, many primary school children who presented with difficulties in French and mathematics have improved. It would be desirable to teach English here in secondary school. Parents have witnessed the improvement of their children who have benefited from Bertozzi's tutoring here. For instance, children have demonstrated their ability to do their homework alone.

 

This location works in very poor conditions. It is a parish on the outskirts of Kinshasa, where the population is very poor. The site lacks tools to compensate for weather, and is seeking some tents. They have no table, no chairs, and no teaching materials. 

 

Update from the Saint Elisabeth site

 

In this location there are four Bertozzi staff. They teach four days a week from 4:30 to 6:30, focusing on French, mathematics, and elementary level teaching. The number of girls participating is higher than boys by 4 to 1. Sometimes there are so many students the teachers are overwhelmed by the number and have to teach beyond 6:30. Overall the students show rewarding improvement. Students who once had gaps in these subjects have benefited from the help of the Bertozzi Initiative and have transcended their difficulties. The teachers report benefiting from teaching as well. In Kinshasa, they say "Anyone who stops learning is the same at ninety as twenty years of age."

 

The site notes low attendance on days of rain and days following holidays, and students take longer to resume activities. This site requests another teacher because of the overwhelming number of students and the limited time the teachers can teach.

 

Update from Ireko-Nkomo

 

This location worked this year with about 100 students, of which a third did not complete their regular school year because of financial difficulties. There are only four teachers, which makes it difficult to work the normal schedule of two or three days a week. 

 

In the field, the initiative helped the Pygmy populations with their tools to support their families. The materials purchased to help this population are two years old and are no longer in good condition. 

 

The site asks that the Initiative help the Pygmy families purchase new tools for farming to help them be self- supporting, and also some of the families have asked that their children, who have reached the end of their school curriculum, could pursue higher education. The initiative helped the first Pygmy child attend college here, and it has inspired the other children.

 

This location also asks for additional teachers, and would like to add the sites of Berongo, Nioki, and Kutu.