J-school extends generosity
Bryan Jackson
Issue date: 2/5/10 Section: Features
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With the help of Embrace it Africa, the journalism school "adopted" a Ugandan boy over the recent winter break.
The adoption program is more like a sponsorship. Individuals, families or, in this case, coworkers, can sponsor a child from the Bethlehem Parent's School and Orphanage and pay for one year of a child's education. The cost is approximately $600 per year for a high school-aged child but can vary depending on age.
Pauline Hoffmann, assistant professor of journalism and mass communication and faculty adviser for Embrace it Africa, facilitated the process with the help of Lindsay Pohlman, Embrace it Africa project manager.
"We had no idea who we would adopt," Hoffmann said. "I just said to Lindsay, 'We're in. We want to adopt one of the students.'"
That student turned out to be 15-year-old Sseruwagi Simon.
The journalism school's sponsorship of Simon will help him attend secondary school, which is equivalent to high school in America.
"Education is certainly thought highly of here, but over there, if you don't have an education you have nothing," Hoffmann said. "We would love it if we could get them to college too, but right now we're just focusing on secondary school."
Simon, whose favorite activity is soccer, said he wants to become a businessman in the U.S., according to a video posted on Embrace it Africa's Web site. The school's founder, Sswerangu Fred, raved about Simon's leadership qualities.
"He looks like an adult man in character," Fred said. "He can lead his other friends."
Hoffmann, who has been to Uganda twice and met Simon the last time she was there, also spoke highly of Simon's overall character.
"He has found his own discipline, and he's a leader among the other kids," Hoffmann said. "They look up to him; they respect him."
The decision to support sponsoring Simon was an easy one for Breea Willingham, visiting professor of journalism and mass communication.
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