I'm Still Alive And Not In Prison

Patrick Hovey
Fairfield University Senior

Well, about twenty days in and I’ve beaten the betting pool my friends made for the amount of days I will stay alive in Africa. They included a sub clause stating that if I spent any time in a prison cell, then I would also lose.

What’s the real story of my experience so far with the IEE? There have been positives and negatives, and this being the pilot year I expected some bumps in the road. After the initial adjustments like adjusting to the slower pace of the lifestyle here, it being sunny and 75 degrees everyday, and being a celebrity among the students here, everything is going splendidly. Molly and Meredith, my co-teachers, are extremely intelligent and Meredith is one of the most travel-experienced persons I have ever encountered. They both are freshman at Cornell, and their intelligence shines through. Brad, our field director, is very gifted organizer and a well needed balance to my life here in Rwanda.

My daily life consists of school from 8-12, lunch till 3, and then class from 3-5. The children here, first graders to sixth graders, are amazing. So eager to learn, to experience everything our group has to offer. So far working with the school staff, we’ve come up with a schedule for all 3300 children. This schedule allows us to see each English class, all fifty-three of them, twice a week with bonus observation/extra work time on Fridays.

In a very short period of time, the school should have twenty brand new computers, installed with the latest Windows operating system. Software for these computers includes the usual programs like Word, and more importantly the language program, Rosetta Stone. Our corner stone to the program, to creating a sustainable program, is this language program. It’s extremely easy to use and to learn from. Also being on the computer, allows us to teach computer literacy.

Being that the week is so fulfilling, I don’t have any energy on the weekends. NOT! Well, the week of teaching is exhausting, and I’m really getting a sense of what it’s going to be like to be a full time teacher. Long days not only dealing with the headaches of trying to teach to a bunch of young kids, but dealing with the fact that the time spent with our team is the most time they have ever spent along side a white person. They always want to know your name, where you’re from, just to touch you. Basically elevating our status to that of a celebrity. Which is pretty awesome.

But, getting back to the weekend and my adventures, Brad and I have already gotten a sense how to enjoy our weekends. We met a crew of about three Rwandans who would probably fit into our groups of friends back in America. We’ve been introduced and now are unofficial members of the Rwandan Football team fan club. We’ve met the leading actress in one of the latest Rwandan movies, and were almost cast as leading actors. Ok, maybe just as extras, and I think one of us did get to grunt for the camera, so I think that constitutes a speaking roll.

So far this trip is all that I have wanted it to be. Just amazing. The country is beautiful and the people living here are incredibly special people. So until next time…