Cultural Exchange

There are several projects within Education for Development's Cultural Exchange program; all programs are designed to help educate people in the U.S. and abroad to work towards our becoming a truly global society, personally and communally.  While our organization is constantly evolving, our program components currently consist of Classroom Lectures, Pen Pal Programs, and the Encouragement of International Study and Volunteerism.

Classroom Lectures
EdforDev Board members and volunteers give educational presentations to school classes and student groups, churches and community organizations.  These events include multi-media presentations and displays of crafts and other cultural objects.  EdforDev educational programs intersperse important facts with music, pictures and delightful anecdotes in order to spark a lively group discussion.

EdforDev personnel are available regularly to give presentations as well as to work with teachers to develop curriculum designed to encourage students’ interest in the worlds’ people (either through research projects, fundraising and volunteering for organizations, or the discussion of possibilities to serve/study abroad).  

If you are an educator or student interested in bringing EdforDev programs into your school, please contact us at info@edfordev.org

Volunteer Opportunities
While we do not yet have our own volunteer programs abroad, EdforDev is interested in helping people find education-related volunteer prospects in developing countries.  Many schools in Uganda and other developing nations welcome volunteer teachers who need not necessarily have teaching credentials.  Kikaaya College School, where Elizabeth Whiston taught, and some other schools can provide room and board for volunteers. To learn more, write us at info@edfordev.org

Pen Pal Programs
Pen Pal Programs are geared toward young people in junior high and high school.  EdforDev has already facilitated the exchange of hundreds of letters, as well as school yearbooks, newspapers and photos. Individuals, classes and other student groups participate in pen pal programs, as they encourage young people to think with a more global perspective as they make new friends around the world.  Interested in participating in a Pen Pal Program? Please contact EdforDev at info@edfordev.org.

West Branch, Iowa & Kikaaya College School, Uganda
EdforDev has two cultural exchange programs currently running between Kikaaya College School in Uganda and West Branch Middle and High Schools.  The students of the West Branch schools have exchanged letters, yearbooks, maps and compact discs with the students from Kikaaya.  The students at West Branch have also had personnel from EdforDev come to their classroom and teach them about the basics of Uganda history and culture.  This is the first time many of the students in these rural American schools have learned about Uganda and had contact with people who had also been to the country.  The presentations and letter exchange creates a personal connection for these students not only with their Ugandan pen pals, but with the county as a whole.  

Iowa City, Iowa & Namirama Secondary School, Uganda
The students of the Interact Club at City High School in Iowa City have spent much of the year raising money to aid EdforDev's endeavor to build a permanent facility for Namirama Secondary School in Eastern Uganda.  The students planned and held fundraisers that raised over $2,000 for EdforDev.  The students of interact jumped into the global arena and are currently in negotiations with Rotary International clubs both in Iowa and Uganda in an attempt to acquire matching funds.  Although raising funds is not the typical format for EdforDev’s cultural exchange programs, the students have learned not only about Uganda as a country, but about international volunteer work and philanthropy.