Report cards are arriving, detailing the academic progress of Habele's scholarship winners through their first semester of the 2011-12 school year.
Each of the 24 students is attending a prestigious private school with the support of a K-12 tuition scholarship that covers roughly 75 percent of enrollment costs. The students come from atolls and islands throughout the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). The schools they attend are situated on the "larger" or "high" islands that serve as State Capitals.
Nationwide, only half of K-12 students graduate high school. Among those entering the Micronesian college system, only one-in-ten graduate with a degree. Students from private secondary schools have much higher graduation and completion rates in Micronesia, and are consistently reported to be "better prepared" to succeed at the post secondary level.
Habele was created by a group of former Peace Corps Volunteers who taught in classrooms across Yap and Chuuk States. Initially focused on Outer Island students, the organization identifies needy students seeking to attend private K-12 schools and provides their family with financial support in the form of tuition scholarships. Checks are issued directly to reputable independent schools. Habele works with these families, and the schools their children attend, to keep detailed records of the students’ personal and academic progress throughout the school year.
Habele also supports students and schools of all types through targeted donations of books, classroom supplies, as well as the creation of local language materials. Habele is a US-based not-for-profit organization, recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) with no full-time salaried employees.
Habele has been raising money from individual and corporate donors across the United States to fund tuition scholarships since 2006. Donors and volunteers support Habele because of an interest in education in Micronesia and the knowledge that Habele responsibly serves educational needs in an efficient and effective way.
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