Africa School Assistance Project

Cause Area

  • Advocacy & Human Rights
  • Children & Youth
  • Computers & Technology
  • Education & Literacy
  • International

Location

191 UNIVERSITY BLVD 285DENVER, CO 80206 United States
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Organization Information

Mission Statement

The Africa School Assistance Project (ASAP) believes that educating children, particularly girls, is fundamental to a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable future for Africa. ASAP is increasing access to education for children in poor, remote areas of East Africa and is developing a Learning Improvement Initiative to enhance teaching quality and classroom learning. ASAP works in accordance with the UN Millennium Development Goals and our projects meet rigorous standards for sustainability and cultural appropriateness.

Additionally, ASAP leads groups of American volunteers to work on our school projects to create a cross-cultural understanding between Americans and Africans. We believe this will have long-lasting implications for the world.

Description

The Africa School Assistance Project (ASAP) is a Denver-based non-profit that works with villagers in rural Africa to help them build a better future for their children.

ASAP, formed in 2008, leverages the work and desires of rural Africans to build schools for their children while fostering among American volunteers an understanding of life in impoverished Africa.

Our first area of focus is a rural school district in Tanzania between mountains Meru and Kilimanjaro. Tanzania is a particularly good place to concentrate our efforts because the government is committed to increasing education in rural areas and will put teachers in villages where schools have been built.

The people in this district, who survive by subsistence farming, desperately want schools. Many villages have built simple, one-room structures but several are too small to accommodate all the children, are only half built, are in a terrible state of disrepair or simply need basic items like desks. That’s where we come in.

First, we require that a village has shown deep commitment to their school prior to our engagement--we view our job as helping those who have already begun the hard work of helping themselves. If there has been visible and measurable progress made by the villagers and they request our assistance, we then work with them to identify the needs of the school and to assess the commitment of the entire village to care for the school after our work is finished. Once a decision has been made to "adopt" a school, we then recruit volunteers and raise money to cover the costs of the project. Finally, we travel to the village for a week of hard work to help the locals finish their new school and to build memories that last a lifetime.

Those who travel to the village to work pay all of their own expenses. ASAP is a 501 c3 and all donations are tax deductible.

Reviews

Would you recommend Africa School Assistance Project?
3 reviews Write a review
by Sofia R. (2013-12-03 19:05:00.0)
I have thoroughly enjoyed being involved with ASAP for the last 3 years. I would strongly recommend this program. Personally I have found it eye-opening and powerful. By involving volunteers and community members ASAP builds not just schools, but communities. The people I have met working on the ground in Tanzania are passionate about the work ASAP is doing in their villages, and eager to help. Seeing the schools grow through ASAP, and understanding how meaningful these schools really are, is something I won't forget. ASAP does powerful and effective work and I would highly recommend it to any adventurer who finds themselves in Tanzania.
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by Rachel K. (2013-12-03 15:57:42.0)
Volunteering with ASAP was lots of fun. While traveling to and experiencing East Africa is incredible on its own, being able help and make a difference makes it that much better. ASAP provided an awesome village experience, fun and games with the local students, and a chance to help build schools for these children who desperately need it. From painting to digging foundation to putting up shelves in a library, you know your work is making a difference in the lives of the locals. It was awesome and I recommend it to everyone!
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by Emma R. (2013-12-03 13:52:35.0)
My experience with ASAP was, in all honesty, life-changing. ASAP gives its volunteers a chance to experience the "real" Africa of daily experience, to meet and be inspired by the students and teachers who are committed to education as the route to a better future for Tanzania's youth, and, of course, to have an amazing, fun trip with a great gout of volunteers. I have been on both a student trip and a traditional trip with ASAP, and I recommend both highly. If you are looking for a safe, exciting, and fun way to truly make a difference in the lives of children in Africa, ASAP is perfect for you. The way this trip will, most likely, influence your perspective on your own life, and the incredible group of people you will meet along the way are bonuses that make ASAP trips even better, at least in my experience. Volunteering with ASAP truly changed my outlook on the world, and the people I met, both Tanzanian and American, were a big part of this.
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