From the President

It is most gratifying to be able to relate to you some of the many events of the past six months. I’m sure that you will agree that Growth Through Learning is moving forward in several areas.

That is not to say that we have not experienced a disappointment, however. As you know, Laura Vinogradov has been our Executive Director for almost a year. Unfortunately, her husband’s work requires him to relocate, and consequently we have lost Laura as well. Fortunately we were able to quickly find a replacement in Lisa Siciliano. Elsewhere in this newsletter is an introductory article about Lisa.

We have also undergone some changes on our Board of Directors. Doug Whiting and Carla Szymanski have both resigned due to changes in their work locations and schedules. Both of these people have been dedicated and effective Board members in the past, and we shall miss them.

The good news is that we have recently acquired two new board members – Judith Nielsen and Margaret Wambega Njengo. Judith has taken over as Clerk of the Corporation from Barbara McCarthy, and Margaret can offer us considerable insight into East Africa as she is a native of Kenya. We wholeheartedly welcome them as we know that they will both be active and productive board members.

Another sign of growth is the formation of a Strategic Planning Committee, headed by Donna Lazorik. This committee has already met several times to review our Mission Statement, Vision Statement, and Core Values, and will soon be finished with defining our goals and objectives for the future.

And perhaps of the greatest significance of all, GTL Board members Jeanne Lynch, Donna Lazorik, Judith Nielsen and Mary Schwartz traveled to East Africa in May in order to visit our sponsored students and our regional coordinators.

For the first time ever, this group held a two-day conference with our three regional coordinators. The meeting was held in Kampala, Uganda and included Regional Coordinators Dr. Florence Nyamu of Kenya, Sr. Mary Salome of Uganda, and Ms. Zainab Tekway Sige of Tanzania.

The attendees discussed the mission and vision of GTL; criteria for student selection and evaluation; and the dynamics of mentoring and how to maintain contact with graduated students. The decisions that were made will be incorporated into GTL’s Strategic Plan. Look for more about their visit in the fall 2007 edition of our newsletter.

I can hardly believe that on July 1st we will be celebrating our 10th anniversary since we were first founded in 1997. What growth GTL has experienced! Our first year we raised just $8,315, and that was enough for us to fund 12 scholarships. During fiscal year 2006 (we do not yet have complete figures yet for fiscal year 2007) we sponsored 219 girls. Our total income for that year was $203,878! It never ceases to amaze me how many people are in complete accord with our mission, and our past history of rapid growth assures me that we are indeed on the right track!