Service

Social Reinvestment: Handicraft Producers

VQI maintains a strong patnerships with the members of the Hokui Cooperative Handicraft Society Ltd.  Since 2002, VQI has provided Hokui with technical assistance, grant moneys for capital improvements, training and education.  We are dedicated to working together to create more sustainable businesses like Hokui.

 
Manya Krobo Scholar Athlete Program (MKSAP)

 

In conjunction with the Konor’s Palace of Manya Krobo, the District Office of Education and the Manya Krobo Secondary School (Makrosec), Vision Quest Images has put together a scholarship program to promote education in the Manya Krobo District in the Eastern Region of Ghana by providing a needy schoolchild with a scholarship for his or secondary school education each year. The primary goal of the scholarship is to spur innovation and self-confidence, and to renew the commitment to service, excellence and self-actualization required for authentic development.

 

Here is an excerpt from the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU):

"Together, we propose a unique and targeted scholarship to promote the university-bound aspirations of disadvantaged Manya Krobo youth. We recognize the incredible value of education and the many stakeholders who must work cooperatively to make it relevant to the lives of youth in the district.

"In the 2004-5 academic year, the Manya Krobo Scholar-Athlete Program (MKSAP) will be extended as an opportunity for one athlete and scholar (either male or female, hitherto referred to as “scholar-athlete”, “student” or in the masculine) to attend the Manya Krobo Secondary School as a boarder paid with full tuition, room and boarding for the first year, and pending a successful review, the second and third years. The ideal candidate and graduate will possess the qualities befitting a progressive leader; demonstrate a commitment to personal excellence and public service; compose himself as a champion on the field of sports; and reveal self-respect, self-discipline and a unique responsibility for himself and those around him. He would have received an aggregate 11 or higher on his BECE and would be strongly involved in athletics. While at Makrosec, the scholar-athlete must continue demonstrate these qualities, achieve a level of academic excellence (with an aggregate of 11 or better), and, with some assistance, demonstrate a commitment to public service by independently designing a School and Community Improvement Project.

"The MKSAP would involve four distinct implementation components each year: 1) Outreach and Selection; 2) Disbursement and Allocation Description, 3) Mentoring and Enrichment Activities; 4) Supervision and Assessment. The MKSAP would receive oversight from an Advisory Board (hereafter referred to as the MKSAP Advisory Board) composed of representatives from the District Office of Education, the Konor’s Palace, Makrosec, and VQI."

Another prominent feature of the scholarship is the School and Community Improvement Project, which takes the form of an innovation in integrating development and educational efforts. Here is a description of that component of the MKSAP also excepted from the MOU:

"During the course of the year, the scholar-athlete will develop a School and Community Improvement Project (SCIP) subject to the approval of the school headmaster and designated Mentor Teacher. The SCIP must satisfy the following requirements:

  • Add visible value to the school and/or Manya Krobo community and improve the quality of life of their members (as determined by the project’s contributors)

  • Involve the contributions and the ideas of other students, including but not limited to the school’s elected student officials (school prefects, captains, etc.)

  • Serve as an ongoing legacy of the Manya Krobo Scholar-Athlete Program

"The SCIP should be visible and last beyond its completion. An event might be considered, but only if its effects were visible—such as organizing a day of service in the school or community that involved a social activity as a way to celebrate afterwards."
 

Partners

 

The Palace of the Konor of Manya Krobo

 

In Ghanaian communities, the chief, or Konor for the Krobo people, is highly respected for his stewardship and can easily determine the course of development for his community.  Drawing from its mission and commitment to strengthening community and in conjunction with the Konor's Education Endowment Fund, VQI has instituted the Manya Krobo Scholar Athlete Program (MKSAP) to support comprehensively and exhaustively education in the Manya Krobo District of the Easter Region. 

As the Chief's linquist, Okyeame Boatey (pictured above) has developed a strong relationship with Adrian Dedomenico to pursue the scholarship project as well as other works in the field of education. VQI is commited to continuing this strong relationship.

 

Manya Krobo District Office of Education

 

The District Office of Education of the District has also entered into agreement with VQI to start the MKSAP, and will provide both logistical and administrative support to see its completion

 

Manya Krobo Secondary School (Makrosec)

 

Makrosec is a middle-rung secondary school.  It currently has nearly 700 students and is both a boarding and a day school. There are approximately 40 teaching and 40 non-teaching staff in the school.  Makrosec is over 30 years old, and is on the rise to become a first-class school under the leadership of Mr. Sackite, its current headmaster. 

 

Makrosec is the site of the MKSAP, and has agreed to support the scholarship program by administrative support, mentoring and enrichment activities as well as supervision and monitoring of the scholarship program.