The dream of Youchaou Traore to give quality education to the poor now supports over 260 children in Kalabankoro

 The vision of our primary and secondary school “Youchaou” was dreamt by the local community leader in Kalabancoro, Youchaou Traore. Many families in Kalabancoro would approach Youchaou and plead for a school to which they could send their kids. For two years Youchaou taught the poorest of the poor in Kalabancoro in a rented degenerating building. The rooms had little ventilation and were too small.

Youchaou saved his money to purchase land in the hope that, one day, he could build a proper school for these kids.

In a chance encounter with young people from the Australian Reach Foundation [link to Reach], fundraising began for a school in Kalabancoro for the poorest of the poor. With the support of many proactive and generous Australians, money was raised and classrooms for grades 1 to 6 were built and opened in 2005.

The demand for a place in the school kept increasing and so, again, fundraising efforts in Australia through the Reach Foundation continued. In 2006, the second storey was completed, providing rooms for grades 7 through 9, a library and an additional three classrooms.

 

News started to spread about Youchaou’s school , which the senior and local representatives of the Ministry of Education describe as one of the best schools in the region. The school has been chosen as a centre for schooling examinations and the government has requested the school to provide the final stages of the school program; for students of years 10-12. In 2007, year 10 classes commenced.

Quality education for the poor is a major focus for our schools and so class sizes are limited to 35 students. Children of poor families constitute approximately 50% of students, with the remainder a mix of backgrounds.

Teachers undergo regular training to improve their teaching techniques, ensuring that students are engaged and are learning effectively. Computers have been donated by the Australian Telecommunications Company Telstra. Computers and the internet facilitate learning for students, teachers and staff. The school is the only not-for-profit school in Mali giving computer classes to students in all grades.

The quality education provided by EPY is paying off; the student examination pass rate is 99%, compared to well under 50% (country average).

Perhaps one of the biggest signs of the school’s success is found with the parents of the students, many of whom never got to go to school. These parents now get to watch their children learn and grow and, with them, grows their hope for Mali.