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Missions... |
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Kay-Billie-Klaer Academy, Ghana New Orleans Mission Trip - 2007
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Kay-Billie-Klaer Academy in Ghana... About the School: The Kay-Billie-Klaer Academy is named after Kay Ensworth, Billie Philbrick, and Betty Klaer Miles, all of our congregation, who befriended and supported a young Ghanaian couple, Awo and Akrofi Dzietror, when they came to Ithaca in 1981. Akrofi was working toward a PhD in agronomy at Cornell University, while Awo enrolled in a child development program at Tompkins Cortland Community College (TC3). From an insignificant beginning with four nursery children in April 1990, the school has grown to offer the full complement of nine years first-cycle education in Ghana, which consists of six years of primary and three years of junior high school. The school now has an enrollment of 349 students, 26 of whom are on scholarships, and employs a total staff of 53. The school's goals are academic excellence, building good character, and development of individuals who can make unique contributions to their society. It is open to children of all faiths; nevertheless, each day begins with Christian prayer, and Christian principles are taught. An important innovation in the school is the introduction of Greek and Latin into the curriculum, something that is not a feature of first-cycle education in Ghana. KBK is thus the only school doing this. The aim is to help KBK pupils develop a wider, stronger, and richer vocabulary in English not only for their present studies, but also (and more importantly) for their senior high school and college education, so that KBK graduates will stand out everywhere. The hard work of Akrofi and Awo has started paying off. The first batch of students who passed in April 2002, all girls, all scored higher than the distinction mark. The second batch also had excellent scores, and every one of these students are currently in their first-choice school. Some Background: Awo Dzietror befriended Kay Ensworth, Billie Phibrick, and Betty Klaer Miles when she cleaned their homes to earn supplementary money for her education. This was when tuition at Awo's college quadrupled for foreign students, and the young couple could no longer finance Awo's education from Akrofi's stipend. The three Presbyterian women and others came to the couple's assistance. With their support, Awo was able to complete her degree in Human Services, Child Care Concentration. When Akrofi and Awo returned to Ghana in 1984, the couple recognized the need for a nursery school and, desiring to work for themselves, started Kay-Billie-Klaer in 1990, from their living room, with four children - two of whom were their own. Kay, Billie, and Betty supported their efforts by sending books and money. Our missioners sent money for scholarships for children whose families could not afford the academy's fees. Other assistance consisted of credit union loans from Akrofi's credit union at the University of Ghana, where he was teaching while assisting Awo with management and academic support on a part-time basis. The nursery school grew quickly. A primary development was added, and by 1994 there were 218 children enrolled, with a paid staff of 18. In 1996, the Dzietrors, both Christians, took a leap of faith and decided to build new classrooms on eight acres of land obtained from a land-owning family on soft, mutually beneficial terms. Our church made a special, on-time grant of $8,000, which gave the construction project a big boost. By December of 1997, four classrooms were finished. The progress of construction was faithfully documented in letters, and photographs were sent to our church. Parents of scholarship recipients, as well as one parent, Anthony Akunzule, who was then studying animal husbandry at Cornell University with support from the PC (USA) International Hunger Program Grant, have provided first-hand testimony to our congregation. Of the three ladies of our church honored in the name of the academy, Betty Klaer Miles was able to visit the school in October of 1999, accompanied by her two sons, David and Chuck Klaer, and her daughter-in-law, Maryanne Gridley, and came back with glowing first-hand reports and memorabilia attesting to the work the Dzietrors were doing. While in Ghana, Betty had the chance to open the Billie Philbrick Memorial Home Science Center, which was built to honor Billie's memory with funds from Billie's funeral donations, Billie's children, and the school's own funds. Work started, two years after Betty's visit, on the most ambitious, but critical and necessary, construction projects so far in the school. This consists of an 18-classroom building, christened simply as "the Klaer Block." At last report, six classrooms of this block have been completed and are in full use. When the entire building is completed, it will serve the classroom needs of the school for a number of years to come. The church is following progress on this project. Other less spectacular construction projects are also going on, namely an open-air basketball/tennis court, volleyball court, and a multi-purpose canopy, also usable as a table-tennis ground. A bookshop has also been added in a locally-fabricated container unit, and landscaping of the grounds is going on as and when there are funds for it. A computer lab has been set up in one of the rooms of the "Billie Block" with twenty-four used PCs, and instruction in computer skills will start as soon as a competent computer instructor can be engaged. In 2001, Akrofi took another leap of faith and took early retirement to devote himself to the school full-time. This was a timely decision as, sadly, Awo was taken suddenly ill with cancer and passed away in July of 2002. She was a rare and fine lady; may she rest in peace. The KBK Academy is growing in strength, and the Dzietrors' children are training hard to take up their positions and steer her on. During the academic year of 2003-04, Kabutey, the elder son, did a one-year, post-senior-high-school teaching position in the Academy before going on to college to study for a degree in Mathematics and Science education. Asi, the elder daughter, born in Ithaca, studied at the University of Ghana to become an educational psychologist. |