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We have decided to expand our mission to include a scholarship program for deserving young adults in Africa to attend University. Let me introduce you to the first young man we have designated to receive this scholarship.
We hope you will enjoy watching a "flyover" rendering of how our completed campus will look when our final three story building is completed. The new building is located on the right as the video begins. The original one story building can be seen about half way through the video.
Our latest project is the construction of a three-story building to provide classrooms for Grades 4-6.
Having completed the Nursery Building and relocated our two KG1 classrooms to the 3rd floor, our focus has turned to completing the three classrooms on the 3rd floor of our primary block in time for our 6th graders in 2020, as well as adding a second Grade 1 classroom.
Job Kyere and Comfort Owusuaa live in Senase, Ghana with their three children, Dennis, Ivy and Christopher. Daughter Ivy is 8 years old and was one of the first students enrolled at SAS in class 1 in September of 2015.
Unequal access to quality education between the rural areas and urban cities in Ghana has left children in rural villages feeling powerless and with little hope.
In January of 2017, we opened our doors to more than 60 two- and three-year-olds. Our Nursery room is big and bright, and filled with toys, puzzles, books, and an abundance of learning materials appropriate for our youngest SAS Scholars.
It takes eleven school days to fall in love. In eleven school days—three Mondays and two each of the rest—I fell so deeply that I swear my heart was left behind at Semanhyiya.
I got on that plane and jetted off to a part of the world many people will never experience. And it’s the best decision I’ve ever made.
Walk into any one of our classrooms and you will find children sitting in small groups reading, putting puzzles together on the floor, or maybe even laying on play mats while working on math or reading a worksheet.
When 30 Semester at Sea students visited SAS for three days in March of 2016, one of their activities was to give an informal assessment to a group of SAS1st grade students, and then to visit three Government schools to administer the same assessment to groups of 1st graders at these schools.
Since the opening of Semanhyiya American School in September of 2015, we have been asked by parents throughout the community to please add a Nursery School, (creche), to our campus.
One of my main motivations for traveling to Ghana this past week was to show the people of this area we remain committed to the success of Semanhyiya American School.
Unlike a sponsorship program, where your donation goes directly to a specific child, our scholarship fund will help supplement a child’s school fees when we determine that their family needs a little help to keep their child in school.
Our next step is to add a building containing two classrooms. One classroom will be our 2nd grade, which will open next September, and the other will be used for many different purposes until it is opened as our 3rd grade classroom in the fall of 2017.
It was still dark on the morning of September 1st as we made our way out to the bus preparing for our very first morning pickup. This is when we got word that our driver had quit!
We are incredibly thankful for Chas Moriarty, a retired teacher from Poway, CA, who came as a volunteer, and extended his stay after he developed a deep connection with these young people.
Less than two and a half years ago I met Fredrick Benneh during a home stay in his village of Senase, Ghana. Bringing quality education and a pathway to a better life for children in his village was always Fred’s dream. Now, it is our shared dream and in 7 days it will become reality.
I have been home from Ghana for several weeks now, and I am still processing all that has taken place in the past months as we inaugurated Semanhyiya American School and opened its doors to 111 Ghanaian children ages 4-6 years old.
Fredrick Benneh was raised by foster parents along with eleven other children in the small farming village of Senase, Ghana. Ten hours from the capital city of Accra, Senase had no school or running water.
I have to believe that many of you are still asking yourself, “who IS GodFred?” “Why the unique spelling?” “Does the foundation have a religious affiliation?” Here is your answer!
With the help of the Social Innovation Challenge prize money awarded to co-founder Fredrick Benneh, our school building is nearly complete!
We’re thrilled to have a school name that conveys the special story that led us to this point.
Choosing a name for our school proved more challenging than any of us imagined it would be.
We have reached the roof and are right on schedule to complete our construction in the next month!
We understand that high quality education at an early age is important for so many reasons! Not only does it give young children a firm foundation for academic and future success, but it also fosters a love of learning.
Our most recent trip to Senase was in a way surreal, as we were watching our vision and dream come to life before our eyes!
We are so thankful for Olivia Benneh, who gives 110% in everything she does!! She is our supervisor on the ground, and a big reason we are making such steady progress with the construction of our school. Thank you for all you do!!