This is a short clip of children in a joint Kindergarten - First Grade class on the Island of Asor, Atoll of Ulithi, The students are copying sentences from a Dr. Suess book. The lighting is poor, as Asor does not have electricity. The children are lying on the concrete floor because it is cool (and the school has only a few chairs).

The library at Asor’s Community Elementary School (ACES) has been developed through the Habele Outer Island Education Fund's public school library project and the hard work of Peace Corps Volunteers. Check out www.habele.org for more info! Please consider donating to Habele in order to expand library development in the Outer Islands of Yap State, the most remote area of Micronesia.

Habele is proud to pass on the news that members of the community on Falalop, Ulithi have come together and raised the additional $300.00 needed to cover the recent fee increase for our two scholarship awardees. Special thanks to Mario Suk for his enthusiasm and leadership!

Regular visitors to the Habele blog (as well as those who are subscribed to our widely read rss feed) know that we recently completed payments for the full tuition and fees of two Outer Island girls from the State of Yap who are attending Bethania High School in the Republic of Palau. Our two scholarship awardees are hard working students from large families living on Ulithi, a remote atoll to the west of Yap Proper. Yap is one of four states in the impoverished Federated States of Micronesia, an isolated and neglected former US colony in the central Pacific.

Today (at the post office to mail our care package - see last post) Habele received a correspondence from the administration at Bethania, dated early October. The letter announced an increase in the monthly tuition and food schedule, from $140 to $170.

Running the numbers… we are sponsoring two girls (2) who will both be attending for the full second semester of five months (5) at an additional cost of thirty dollars per month ($30). This means an additional three hundred dollars (US $300.00) will be required. Habele board members have already been in touch with Outer Island community organizations, Peace Corps volunteers past and present, Micronesians living and working in the states, as well as faithful Habele donors; and we are determined to help the families reach this goal! While the amount may be small to our North American readers, it represents roughly one tenth of the Per Capita GDP of a Micronesian (and a much greater portion of the income of a family in the Outer Islands, atolls which have little if any formal cash economy).

Stay tuned for updates, and feel free to help us out by donating online!

The Habele Outer Island Education Fund is piecing together a winter care package for our two Ulithian scholarship awardees who are attending Bethania High School in Palau. Seniors from the University of South Carolina as well as a recent Alumna of Costal Carolina University have donated shirts, magazines and school supplies. Thanks for pitching in!

This week’s Economist reports on a study by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, which investigated the neural basis for unselfish acts. Researchers examined the responses of the brain when giving anonymously to charity.

They found that the part of the brain that was active when a person donated happened to be the brain's reward centre—the mesolimbic pathway, to give it its proper name—responsible for doling out the dopamine-mediated euphoria associated with sex, money, food and drugs. … But it seems there is more to altruism. Donating also engaged the part of the brain that plays a role in the bonding behaviour between mother and child, and in romantic love.

While the volunteers and donors who sustain Habele have long taken satisfaction in empowering Outer Island students, it is none the less exciting to hear there is an observable and bio-psychological basis for this!

As heads of state took their turn speaking to the General Assembly, the Federated States of Micronesia used its time to address the importance of sustainable development.

The Vice President of the Federated States of Micronesia, H.E. Redley Killion, in his address to the plenary of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) continued to voice the concerns of his country on issues like climate change, sustainable development, the reform of the United Nations and the environment...

More info from a Pacific Magazine article and an FSM Government press release.

Habele is dedicated to promoting educational opportunities and advancement in the Outer Islands of Yap, the most isolated part of Micronesia. We feel that truly sustainable development is guided by local voices and concerns, and must move away from excessive reliance on a disproportionately large public sector. Meaningful social and political sovereignty involves greater economic independence and freedom than presently exists for the FSM; broader educational opportunity is the first step towards personal and national self determination.

A special note of thanks to the Nunn family whose long-term commitment to education and personal empowerment continues to manifest itself through their support and encouragement. Thanks! -Habele.

Sirow. It is with the greatest of reverence and humility that Habele extends our sympathies to the family and friends of Glen Nery, who passed from our presence late last week. His energy and ambition are sorely missed.

FSM Mourns Death of Soldiers

It’s official! On September 19th, 2006 the Habele Outer Island Education Fund received notification from the IRS that it has been granted exemption from Federal income tax under section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

For more information on what this means we suggest you look at
this wikipedia article, as well as this IRS page.

Simply put, we are now fully “charitable” (as of September 13, 2006 – the processing date) and all donations are deductible, including gifts back to May 4, 2006 (our initial date of incorporation).

Habele would like to extend its gratitude to the numerous legal, policy, and tax experts who selflessly donated their time and talent to help us reach this point. We look forward to continuing our efforts, now as a full 501c3, and working towards expanding educational opportunities for Outer Island children in the impoverished former colony of Micronesia.

Habele is proud to announce that two full-tuition scholarships have been awarded to Outer Island students for the 2006-07 school year. Both awardees will be attending an all-girls private secondary school in the Republic of Palau. In accordance with the Habele scholarship contract these pupils will need to maintain a minimum GPA, as well as a spotless disciplinary record. Transportation costs to and from Palau will be paid for by the students' families.

The winners were selected on account of their exceptional primary school performance, their dedicated involvement in cultural and community activities, as well as the fact that both lost a parent at an early age.

Habele would like to extend its gratitude to the wide range of private donors who have made these scholarships possible. US and Micronesian citizens alike, as well as members of the Habele Board have worked hard to approach our fundraising goals. We are still compiling the money for the spring semester tuition. As the school year begins we look forward to supporting our award winners, as well as working with teachers and volunteers in the Outer Islands to support the community schools there. More information about our ongoing projects here.