The Global Village School

The Global Village School

The Global Village School provides an enriched education to teenage girls whose formal education has been interrupted by war and refugee camp experiences. Pioneering an innovative curriculum, the school provides  teenagers with intensive English language training and enhanced education, including an  emphasis on science and math, the humanities and integrated arts. We respect, honor and accept students from all cultural backgrounds. GVS is located in the educational wing of Decatur Presbyterian Church but has no affiliation with any religious faith. Explore our unique multi-cultural school on these pages. Click here for a downloadable copy of our Statement of Purpose which can be circulated in your community. 

GVS receives no federal or state funds.  Your individual gifts of financial support keep the doors open. Please donate by clicking the link on the right side of this page. Your gift is tax deductible and will be used wisely.  

GVS accepts applications from girls or their refugee agency advocates based on the following profile: age 13-17, recent arrival in the US and a strong desire to learn. 

 

 

Smile!

Dental care is so important for health as well as a beautiful smile. Girls at GVS have rarely had any attention paid to their teeth or dental hygiene, and if they have had it wasn't a happy experience. So look at the smiles in this photo from Dr. Nancy Stewart's office! When the girls in this picture saw it, they said "Oh! Kelly (left) and Nyasha (right) were so nice!"

Thank you for putting a smile on all these faces, Dr. Stewart, and for your generosity in offering to treat these deserving young women. They'll be spreading the training they are getting on how to care for their teeth to their families and beyond. And investigating careers in dentistry too.

 

Dancing and Service

In 2010 Michael Rosof was part of a dance performance that included a certain GVS girl named Bertha. As his bar mitzvah approached, Michael decided that he wanted to do something to raise funds for this school he had been hearing about from Bertha: a school for teenage refugee girls in Decatur.

 

All summer long Michael held lemonade fundraisers, and then in January he was ready. His parents brought him to GVS and he presented a very generous check to the school so that it can go on helping other teenage girls. Thank you Michael, and mazel tov!

Druid Hills High Front Page Features GVS Alum Paw Boe

The student on the far left of the Druid Hills Home page is GVS's own Paw Boe.  Paw started learning violin at GVS and now plays in the Druid Hills orchestra. A determined student, Paw still has time to help other GVS girls who have now started at Druid Hills. We are so proud of Paw Boe for her music making and her scholarship.

Latest Wish List...

Thanks to you, many things on our Wish List have appeared as if by magic!

A few months ago GVS girls had a great piece of luck. Community activist and longtime volunteer in the refugee community Bobby King set up a P.E. program. Now twice a week the girls get some great physical activity: something different every week. It's great for our hard-working students to get some physical acticity and they are thriving on it.

Bobby has a list of things he and the others who volunteer with him need to work with the girls. Can you help? Thanks in advance!

20 exercise mats 2 volleyballs 20 plastic water bottles 1 CD player for music during exercises copier paper (always!) Laminating sheets

 

 

 

Grandmothers For Peace and John Lewis Present Prizes

GVS writers Bertha and Rita were honored at a celebration arranged by Grandmothers for Peace as two of the five essay winners.  In addition to their essays being chosen from among 83 submissions, Bertha and Rita were the only non-native English speakers. And the awards were presented by Congressman John Lewis.

Bertha first met Congressman Lewis on the GVS trip to Washington D.C. in 2010, when GVS was invited to his office and later met him on the steps of the Capitol. The whole school is so proud of our two essay winners, and thanks Grandmothers for Peace and Congressman Lewis for this honor. You may watch a video by videographer Judy Conder of the presentation which includes Elise Witt singing, Bertha, Rita, John Lewis and Grandmothers for Peace at the presentation,

The two peace essays can be downloaded here:  Download Bertha's Essay "War Is a Disease".

Download Rita's Essay "Building Peace".

Spreading Out the Joy All Year Long

A Monthly Gift to GVS makes an even bigger difference!

Like most of us, you probably plan your budget for the year, knowing that there is a bottom line each month you must meet - housing, food, utilities, insurance payments. And you also know that you can expect some kind of regular monthly salary, annuity or other income that you can rely on month after month. You know the drill!

 GVS is no different and one of my responsibilities is to see that we have the cash on hand to keep those monthly expenses paid - to pay our excellent teachers, keep our post office box open, buy MARTA tickets for the girls to come to and from school and to provide nutritious lunches.  

Some families like to do all their giving at the end of each year.  But others appreciate the ability to spread their annual donation across the months.  Please consider what's right for your family.  We appreciate all your gifts.  But if monthly giving is right for you, it serves GVS very well.

If you want to consider making your annual gift to GVS throughout the year, with convenient monthly automatic payments through our online processor, click the Donate Now button on this page and select "recurring" as your gift type..   You'll get an immediate receipt for your gift online, and we can provide an annual statement if you like.   It's easy and convenient, saves time, paper, and postage.

Think about it and if it's right for you, it's right for GVS!

Congratulations Kelsey! GVS Helps a Student Earn a Posse Scholarship.

Kelsey Sullivan, the Druid Hills High School student who set up a tutoring program for GVS students there, has won a four-year full scholarship through the Posse Program to Boston University.  The Posse foundation uses non-traditional ways of identifying public school student leaders to award full scholarships to private universities.  Students are nominated by their schools for their leadership qualities and community service, and then they go through lots of group and individual interviews, they get recommendations (GVS's Julia Levy wrote one about her work for GVS) and then they're named one of ten members of a "Posse" that go together to a university from a regional area.  President Obama donated a portion of his Nobel winnings to the program. 

Kelsey says a large part of her success in achieving this came from what she's done with GVS students (Paw Boe is shown here) and the tutoring program for them that she's developed over at Druid Hills High School--one that's now formally aligned with the IRC's tutoring program.  She has put in the hours and shown enormous beyond-her-years initiative in working with our girls, and there is no doubt that at least one of them is now college-bound largely due to her efforts and consistent, whatever-it-takes support. 

GVS is so proud of this unique ability as a school to provide important educational opportunities not just for 30 refugee students but for the high school and college kids that work with them--extending our mission.  Kelsey wants to study international relations now and go out there and dedicate her life to working with underserved populations.  She credits her work with Paw Boe for inspiring her to do this.

More National Coverage for GVS

The Huffington Post reaches a wide and influential audience on the web, and did a nice job picking up both stories. You can read the article here, or enter the URL below into your browser.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/16/refugee-teen-girls-find-s_n_1095584.html

CNN Story on GVS Hits Nationwide

Reporter Dana Rosenblatt's excellent story on GVS provides an accurate and warm glimpse of being a Global Village School student. Click here to read Dana's story or copy and paste the address below into your web browser. 

 

http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/12/us/atlanta-refugee-school/index.html?iref=allsearch

GVS Featured on Channel 5 - revisit the program here!

Thanks to award-winning broadcaster Lisa Rayam, Fox News Channel 5 presented a wonderful segment on the Global Village School Thursday November 10th.  Send this link on to show your friends the school you are supporting and add a note asking them to add their support to yours in this season of giving. 

Click on the link above, or copy and paste this into your browser:          http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/dpp/news/local_news/School-Teaches-Children-From-War-Torn-Areas-20111110-pm-pk