The Global Village Project Inc

THE GLOBAL VILLAGE PROJECT, INC. IS AN INNOVATIVE SPECIAL PURPOSE SCHOOL FOR REFUGEE GIRLS AND YOUNG WOMEN WITH INTERRUPTED SCHOOLING. THE ORGANIZATION'S MISSION IS TO DEVELOP A STRONG EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR EACH STUDENT WITHIN A CARING COMMUNITY USING A STRENGTHS-BASED APPROACH AND INTENSIVE INSTRUCTION IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERACY, ACADEMIC SUBJECTS, AND THE ARTS.

GLOBAL VILLAGE PROJECT (GVP) WAS FOUNDED IN 2009 BY A GROUP OF EDUCATORS AS THE ONLY SCHOOL IN THE COUNTRY DEDICATED TO MEETING THE EDUCATIONAL NEEDS OF RECENTLY RESETTLED REFUGEE YOUNG WOMEN AND PREPARING THEM FOR HIGH SCHOOL. SINCE OUR INCEPTION, WE HAVE SERVED MORE THAN 280 STUDENTS IN TOTAL, AT NO COST TO THE STUDENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES. THE 2020-21 SCHOOL YEAR AT GVP WAS DISTINCT. DUE TO THE PANDEMIC, WE HAD TO PIVOT TO HOLD CLASSES ENTIRELY ONLINE, WHICH MEANT TEACHERS AND STUDENTS ALIKE HAD TO ADJUST TO A NEW WAY OF "DOING SCHOOL". WE CONTINUED TO DELIVER OUR UNIQUE EDUCATIONAL MODEL, MAINTAINED SMALL CLASSES (8:1 STUDENT-TEACHER RATIO), EMPLOYED HIGHLY QUALIFIED TEACHERS, AND TRAINED VOLUNTEERS TO SUPPORT LEARNERS AND TEACHERS TO SUPPORT STUDENTS IN A NEW ONLINE ENVIRONMENT. ALTHOUGH THIS WAS A DIFFICULT TRANSITION FOR OUR SCHOOL THAT RELIES ON EXPERIENTIAL AND HANDS-ON LEARNING, WE WERE SUCCESSFUL. TEACHERS HAD TO LEARN NEW SKILLS SUCH AS HOW TO DELIVER CONTENT VIA ZOOM AND GOOGLE CLASSROOM, HOW TO SHOW PROCESSES VIA DIGITAL WHITE BOARDS, AND HOW TO CARE FOR STUDENTS' SOCIAL EMOTIONAL NEEDS AS THEY LEARNED FROM HOME AND JUGGLED THEIR HOUSEHOLD RESPONSIBILITIES WITH EDUCATIONAL EFFORTS. WE'RE PROUD TO SAY THAT OUR STUDENTS, TEACHERS, AND PROGRAM TEAM ADJUSTED INCREDIBLY WELL TO THE NEW CHALLENGE OF ONLINE LEARNING. THROUGH OUR REMOTE LEARNING MODEL, WE HAVE REMAINED DEEPLY COMMITTED TO PROVIDING THE SAME LEVEL OF SPECIALIZED, HOLISTIC, AND STRENGTHS-BASED EDUCATION THAT CHARACTERIZES OUR ON-SITE OPERATIONS AND REFLECTS OUR MISSION AND VALUES. AS ALWAYS, OUR EDUCATIONAL MODEL RESTS ON FOUR PROGRAM PILLARS-INTENSIVE ENGLISH LANGUAGE & LITERACY, STEAM, SOCIAL & EMOTIONAL LEARNING AND WELLNESS, AND ALUMNAE & MENTOR PROGRAMMING-TO CREATE A UNIQUE "WHOLE STUDENT" APPROACH THAT IS INDIVIDUALIZED AND INTENSIVE. IN THE VIRTUAL LEARNING CLASSROOM, THIS INCLUDES REGULAR SYNCHRONOUS CLASSES ACROSS ALL SUBJECT AREAS, SELF-GUIDED ACTIVITIES AND WORK PACKETS, INDIVIDUALIZED SUPPORT VIA OFFICE HOURS WITH TEACHING STAFF, AND INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP SUPPORT FROM OUR SCHOOL COUNSELOR. GVP HAS ALSO PRIORITIZED "WRAPAROUND" EFFORTS--INCLUDING WEEKLY DELIVERIES OF FOOD AND HOUSEHOLD SUPPLIES, WEEKLY PHONE CALLS TO EACH FAMILY, AND PHYSICALLY DISTANCED IN-PERSON CHECK-INS-- TO ENSURE THE WELLNESS OF OUR FAMILIES AND ASSIST IN MITIGATING ANY ISSUES THAT MAY ARISE. ADDITIONALLY, IT WAS THE FIRST SCHOOL YEAR WE HAD A STUDENT AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT MANAGER TO LEAD THESE EFFORTS. DESPITE THE CHALLENGES OUR STUDENTS FACED, INCLUDING THE INABILITY TO BE ASSESSED FOR ACADEMIC GROWTH AND PERFORMANCE, THEY CONTINUED TO DEFY THE LIKELY OUTCOMES. THE ONLY ASSESSMENT THAT WAS PROVIDED DURING 2020-21 YEAR WAS WIDA ACCESS FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS. ALL FORM 3 STUDENTS WERE MATCHED WITH MENTORS IN THE SPRING, AND 11 STUDENTS GRADUATED FROM THE PROGRAM. IN TOTAL, THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 60 ACTIVE MENTORS SERVING 75 MENTEES. GVP STAFF CLOSED OUT A 3 YEAR GRANT PERIOD FROM THE GOIZUETA FOUNDATION, OUR LARGEST FUNDER, AND WAS ABLE TO CREATE AND DOCUMENT 10 OF ITS INTEGRATED UNITS OF STUDY AS WELL AS THE SCOPE AND SEQUENCE OF ITS STEAM PROGRAM. DURING THE 2020-21 SCHOOL YEAR, GVP HAD SEVERAL LEADERSHIP TRANSITIONS AND NEW MEMBERS JOIN THE TEAM. ELIZABETH ELANGO BECAME THE NEW CEO AND HEAD OF SCHOOL AND CASSIE LEYMARIE BECAME THE DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION & IMPACT.