More!

Hello again!

Getting online is such a treat! I only have a couple minutes, but there is news from my kind principal! I was able to meet with him yesterday! His name is Donald but he will remain in Majuro for training/inservice during my school year. The acting principal is a rimajel (Marshallese person) named Hezgeld (!). The school may have up to 80 students total this year, and I will teach 1st-8th grade English. I have a post planned about the reasons and ethics behind teaching English in the Marshall Islands coming soon that may be of interest, but that is for later...

My host mom. Percy, is also a teacher. She lives with her husband and two sons (a pretty small family for the Marshallese). Donald told me that I have my own "house", most likely a one room shack thing, that is on stilts, has plywood walls and a traditional roof made of woven pandanus leaves! It is mere feet from the iar (lagoon side) of the island where there is a sandy beach- this is rare because most beaches are rocky (coral). Everyone there is very excited about me he said and I will have my own classroom. So, the students will cycle in and out of their homerooms to visit with me. The school is in GREAT need and there are few supplies. I am grateful for my preparation and the help of you guys.

Lisey and Sam I got your letters, and I was thrilled. Everyone please write. The letters are already tremendous support.

WorldTeach/Maya
PO Box 627
Majuro, MH 96960
Republic of the Marshall Islands

+ use a customs form if you send a package
+ wrap food well and do not send anything perishable
+ i will post a detailed and long list of needs within a week

Tiny Update!

Here is a photo of me in Long Beach with some of the supplies I purchased with the money raised! It was a great success and I can not thank you enough. There is still over $400 remaining which I plan to spend around Christmas break when I know more about what my school needs!



I have some more information about my placement. I will be in the VILLAGE Buoj ("Bouze") on the islet Aerok of the Atoll Ailinglaplap, which literally means 'island big big'. Aerok is six miles long and very narrow. On one end is the town of Aerok where there is a small store and an airstrip. A volunteer named Naita will be there, and her partner, Frederico will be two miles from her in a town called Jabot. I am four miles away on the other end of the island! At first I was a little disappointed to know there would be others so close to me, but the more I know about them and the Atoll the more happy I am about the placement. First of all, they are a great couple- fun, friendly, kind and interesting! There are two chains of islands in the Marshalls: Ratak, 'sunrise' and Ralik, 'sunset'. Ailinglaplap is in the Ralik chain, and four of the Iroji, Kings, have homes in Buoj! Furthermore, we went to the US Embassy recently and met with the outgoing Ambassador to the Marshall Islands, Greta Morris. She told me that there are a lot of dolphins in my lagoon! Buoj has a population of about 200, with 70 students, so my classes will be small.

More to come! Please send mail! My first paper update will hopefully arrive soon for posting. Within a few days I will most again with a detailed list of things I need. Thank you so much. Below is a photo I took from the plane just before landing in Majuro.

I'm Here

Yokwe iok!

 

It really is impossible to sum up what has happened in the past week. I arrived safely with views of the most spectacular coastline I have ever seen. My Marshallese is coming along well and I know a couple hundred words, plus another hundred or more that are almost identical to their counterparts in English: hour is 'owa', minute is 'minit' etc. I'll write more when I can, perhaps two updates like this and hopefully the letters I am sending will arrive soon to be posted. Thanks for the support.

Heading Out

For the past three nights I have had trouble sleeping. I've been falling asleep out of exhaustion between 2 and 3 am and waking up tired but alert by 7! There hasn't been much to do aside from massive iPod updates and the stray errand.

This afternoon I leave for the Los Angeles area where I will stay for two nights before heading to Honolulu and then Majuro on Saturday. Each flight is around 5 hours and there is a very short layover inbetween. I arrive in the Marshall Islands at 3:40pm Sunday, July 16 (they are 19 hours ahead of PST).

Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to the Dropcash campaign! The total is even higher due to a few payments sent directly to Lisey's paypal account. I'm honored. In LA Lisey and I will do some of the shopping and with the remainder I will purchase supplies in Majuro and help fund repairs for school chairs and desks if needed.

This is my last post from the states, and I will continue updating during orientation, language immersion and training in Majuro. After that, I can only hope that my 'snail-mail' reaches you swiftly.

You can write me here:

WorldTeach / Maya
PO BOX 627
Majuro, MH 96960
Republic of the Marshall Islands

If you are interested in sending supplies or books please email me (micronomicon AT gmail.com) for detailed information (paper mail after August 10).

If you send a letter, please consider dropping something else inside:
* a sudoku from your newspaper
* a photo of your family/pet/hometown
* your favorite poem
* news article of importance

Thank you! I'll be writing!

Technicalities

I found WorldTeach online just before midnight on June 20th, emailed the program director immediately, and started the application process the next day. Three essays, two recommendations, copies of my diplomas (did not have access to the BS, just the MA), official transcripts, an interview and a few other things later- one week later actually- I was invited to join.

Since then I have been taking care of various program necessities like an HIV test (negative), police clearance and doctor's visit, but other than that I SHOP. 9 thrift stores, 5 Walgreens, 1 Target, Amazon.com, Otterbox.com, Office Depot, Mervyns, etc etc. I bought eight pairs of underwear at once, a new camera (I needed one that takes AAs), bottles and bottles of spf50 sunscreen, a solar kit to recharge batteries and my ipod, cold meds, bed sheets, fishing lures, antibiotic cream, tiny portable speakers, flip flops, gifts for my host family, towels, calcium supplements, and much more. Sometimes shopping is fun, but trying to find exactly what you need in a set amount of time is frustrating and difficult. I'm still in need of snorkel gear, but I wear glasses so an off-the-shelf set is out of the question...

Some of what I need I have in storage in Texas, while I am now in San Francisco, so I am buying a lot. The task of preparing and packing is monumental when compared to the 13lbs of luggage I started with for my time in Asia. Nevertheless, none of this will matter much longer and I will be wondering if the tide is low enough to skip on over to the next islet for a coconut.

Updates tomorrow on the wildly successful Dropcash campaign when the final donations clear!

Please Help

There is very little information about my school. I will be teaching elementary classes on the island of Bouj of the Ailinglaplap Atoll. There are simply not the same resources in the Marshall Islands as there are in schools in the Unites States and other Western or industrialized nations. Based on what I have read about the schools in general, and especially in knowing that I will be the first of my kind at the school, it is likely that there will be very few supplies available to me. I am not required to purchase any teaching materials, and it is possible to succeed with very little, but I want to do the most I can for the students and the school on Bouj. I have already spent $130 on materials for my students and my classroom. In the photos below you can see a few of the things I have purchased (many from thrift stores at great prices!): books; supplies like flash cards, colored pencils, chalk; games and lesson starters, dice, jump ropes, twister and Sesame Street dominoes.





A dear friend has started a Dropcash campaign. All the supplies I have purchased thus far will be covered by me. I am seeking to raise at least $500 to purchase additional supplies before I leave and during the school year when I am able to return to the main island Majuro. Before leaving I hope to purchase items that are not readily available in the Marshalls: wall charts, dry erase posters and markers, alphabet borders, stencils, a large wall calendar, stickers, markers, etc. After I arrive I will purchase what I can on Majuro (at a slightly higher price than in the US, due to shipping costs): pencils and sharpeners, paper, a stapler, construction paper, crayons, rulers, notebooks, etc. I will keep detailed and clear records of my spending and document as much as I can through informal financial reports and photography when possible.

If you would like to, as an individual or business, donate supplies or books, that would be fantastic! Sending packages to the Marshall Islands is quite economical- not much more than sending within the US! You can even send via MediaMail (though it may take several months), so Priority Mail is preferred! Please email me, Maya, for details through August 10th. micronomicon AT gmail.com

Again, donations HERE!

Furthermore, if you are a teacher and would like to arrange a pen-pal correspondence, please let me know!

My Assignment

The Marshall Islands is a TINY country of around 60,000 in the Pacific Ocean just north of the equator (9 00 N, 168 00 E). You may have heard of them recently, as June 30th marked the 60th anniversary of controversial nuclear testing in the area. The islands comprise over 1200 islands with a total land mass of 70 square miles and sea area of 750,000 square miles! The Marshalls have a history with Japan, Spain, Germany and most recently the United States. After World War II, the UN Trusteeship Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands allowing the islands to be administered by the United States. In May 1979 the Republic of the Marshall Islands gained independence, but remains close to the US as a protectorate and under a Compact of Free Association (it was reworked and named as "Compact II" in 2003). The Marshall Islands is 19 hours ahead of PST.

I have been assigned to the Ailinglaplap Atoll, one of the 'main population centers' outside of the main island Majuro. The Ailinglaplap Atoll has 2,000 inhabitants and comprises 52 reef islets (islands) with a total of 5.76 square miles of land mass. I will be teaching on Bouj in the south, of which I do not yet know the size and population.

I am considered an employee of the Marshall Islands Ministry of Education, as this program is generously fully-funded by them. Their schools are tremendously in need; suicide rates among youth are high and in some areas a staggeringly low percentage pass high school entrance exams. The Marshallese have a predominantly oral tradition, and their language has only recently been translated into written form so there are very few Marshallese educational materials- and those that exist are not standardized. There are 76 schools in total, spread over great distances. On the outer islands, fewer than half of local teachers only have a high-school education. The government is greatly dedicated to improving the current system and enriching the lives of their students.

As with any supposedly altruistic venture, this project will likely leave me fuller than imagination allows at this point. Today I enjoyed a hot shower, ate green vegetables, wore jeans and spoke on the phone several times- all things I will not be able to do for most or all of my stay in the Marshall Islands. Images of paradise, fresh seafood, an embracing host family and cheery students fill my fantasies, but I know the real rewards may come long after I arrive. Hang around, I think we're in for something great!

What is this?

I have joined the WorldTeach Marshall Islands program for the 2006-2007 school year. On July 15th I depart for training on Majuro, the main island. Join the adventure through my cultural tranistion and training! Once I relocate from Majuro to my rural teaching post, I will blog through handwritten letters- my only real form of communication after mid-August!