Antigua 2015 Arrival and Kickoff

On February 14, 2014 twenty-one tired but excited people departed the plane in Antigua to start their adventure of working in the schools. Sunday was a planning day and on Monday the work started. Four major things were initiated the first two days.

• Our teams of (14) students headed to the schools to install and/or upgrade computer labs. This year our focus, as per The Rotary Foundation (TRF), is to concentrate on one Parish in Antigua and do as much as we can in those schools. This means more computers, wireless systems in some schools, smart boards, and more.
• My wife Jan (with Laura videoing) opened a new sewing center, which also includes a community library for youth. The response was very good and they are rapidly progressing. These lessons will be continued by a local person, whom we pay, as per TRF guidelines.
• As part of this project there is a substantial investment in teacher training, again, as per TRF requirements. Over a number of different sessions we are to train most if not all of the teachers in our designated Parish. The training is on using technology to teach better and meet curriculum goals. After some initial “caution” there is good buy-in and on Tuesday each teacher created a lesson plan using technology as a teaching tool.
• Public relations – On Monday we met the Director of Education, the Governor General (he is the Queen’s representative to Antigua) and Cordel Joshia and I appeared on Good Morning Antigua (numerous people commented on seeing it).