One Year After Our First Scholarship Program

ANE-HHDP Diagram
Originally uploaded by joshdaneshforooz

I can still remember meeting with the warm-hearted Director for World Vision, Ghana, Sam Asari, one year ago. I sat in his office with our videographer, Jedd Goble, and he asked, "So what did you have in mind for ANE’s scholarship recipients' community service with World Vision?"

I pulled out my yellow notepad and began to draw a diagram that depicted my experience as an undergraduate at Westmont College in sunny Santa Barbara: I received one-on-one spiritual mentorship while navigating the wide spectrum of the rigorous liberal arts. I also passed along what I had been learning by volunteering in the Santa Barbara community--mentoring elementary school students in English and visiting the local jail to spend time with youth.

This experience of regularly receiving and regularly giving brought me deep satisfaction. I felt as though I was living how God meant for me to live.
As I sat in the office with Sam Asari, I found myself eager to pass along my transformative experience to our students in Ghana. So I drew the diagram depicted here, and called it the holistic human development program.

Today it brings me deep joy to see our scholars being changed in the same ways I was at Westmont. In Ghana, Frank recently volunteered at the National Cardiothoracic Centre, Korle-bu Teaching Hospital, for 4 weeks, sitting in on surgeries and learning about what prevents people accessing health care; Bright Ofori worked at the office of World Vision-Ghana at Coaltar, a suburb of Suhum in the Eastern Region of Ghana, learning about the vibrant life of one of the world’s premiere nonprofits; and Jorge in Peru is learning to embrace his mistakes and learn from them, while continuing to move forward with a positive attitude and hope for the future.

I can’t help but see myself in our scholars. I suppose that’s what keeps me excited and energetic about ANE’s vision. My life has been changed by great mentors and professors, and it’s truly satisfying to see our scholars experience the same thing. I can’t wait to see how God will continue to use our organization as a vehicle for His mission on earth of making disciples of “all nations.”

Meet the Scholars - concluding our trip

The day of our flight, Jedd and I invited the scholars to lunch at our hotel for some good pizza and paperwork. I explained the program in detail, and they all signed agreements.


Afari Anthony (Political Science)


Albert Agoabey (Finance)


Frank Nyabe (Medicine)


Eric Asiamah (Accounting)


Bright Ofori (Finance)


We all gathered near the pool at the hotel.

Now we're back in the US. Jedd is working hard on the video, and I'm preparing to travel to Cambridge, MA, to begin my master's of theological studies. Thank you all for joining me on this remarkable journey, encouraging me, commenting on my blog and, most of all, praying for me. It has helped me more than you know.

A more detailed biography of the students will be available on our website (allnationseducation.org coming soon) in the near future. If you have any questions, or would like to donate to these students' education, please contact me: josh_dforooz@allnationseducation.org.

Meeting the Pro-Vice Chancellor

Today, Jedd and I met the Pro-Vice Chancellor to formally give $2500 USD to the University of Ghana for our scholarship recipients. The Financial Aid Director said that if we wrote a check from a US bank, it would take roughly 3 months to clear. That's why we went with cash. It took us two hours to withdrawal!


I asked him what he did his Ph.D. on. He told me about his interests in literacy and linguistics and how they influence political leadership. He then gave me a copy of his most recent book: Education, Literacy and Governance: A linguistic inquiry into Ghana's burgeoning democracy.

Traveling to village, signing memorandums

We've done a few things since the last time I wrote: (1) Jedd and I traveled to Woe, Ghana, to Frank's village; he's one of our recipients. We met his family and documented (with Jedd's camera) his personal history.



In a good year, Frank's parents earn about $580 US dollars from farming. Frank is in his first year of medical school, and yearns to, after graduation, "meet the needs of my people." ANE was able to give Frank $1000 USD for the entire year, but he is still in need of $2900. In Ghana, student loans are not an option for students like Frank. I hope to raise that money to enable him to finish his first year!

That was the weekend.

(2) Today, Jedd and I met with the National Director for World Vision, Ghana, the World Vision Programs Director, and Pastor Richard to sign Memorandums of Understanding, which delineate our partnership with each respective party. Our scholars will volunteer at a World Vision Area Development Program in a rural part of Ghana each summer, and regularly be mentored by both World Vision's Director for Programs, Pastor Richard, and the University of Ghana's Dean of Students.


Pastor Richard and I after signing the Memorandum of Understanding.


World Vision National Director for Ghana and I discussing All Nations Education's partnership with WV.

University of Ghana meeting - the BIG one

The University of Ghana Provost and I signed the Memorandum of Understanding between All Nations Education and the University.


IN THE PICTURE FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: Pastor Richard (ANE Mentor), Financial Aid Director, Dean of Students (ANE Mentor), Provost, Me, World Vision National Director for Ghana (ANE Mentor), Opportunity International delegate, World Vision Ghana Program's Director (ANE Mentor).

Today was the big meeting at the University. We all met in the Pro-Vice Chancellor's office to discuss ANE's holistic human development program. After that, we invited the 5 scholarship recipients in. I gave an introductory speech (see it below), and the mentors became acquainted with their new mentees. I was surprised to see that the mentors wasted no time in beginning to grill (in a good way) the students about their personal lives and their visions for the future of Ghana. (See below for a diagram of ANE's holistic human development program.)

Here is my speech that depicts ANE's vision for the kind of education that future leaders need:

SPEECH – JOSH DANESHFOROOZ, ALL NATIONS EDUCATION

University of Ghana Administration, World Vision Ghana and Opportunity International delegates, Pastor Richard, young scholars, thank you for being here today. I am delighted to join with you in a partnership with All Nations Education that seeks to prepare the next generation of leaders through rigorous academics and life-long mentorship.

You might ask, “Why is a 23-year-old student traveling to Ghana to do all of this?” The answer is simple: I have received a gift. And now I am here today to pass it along to you. One day, I hope that you too will keep this gift in motion by passing it along to others in your families, communities, your nation and the world.

But what is this gift? It is twofold: holistic education and mentorship.

One of the great temptations of modern education is to develop the brain but neglect the heart and spirit. All Nations Education believes that our world needs the type of education that teaches, not only the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences, but also how to live a good human life.

Our mission is to foster education that awakens the mind to the richness of human learning and deepens our love for humanity. An education without the latter is no education at all. For what role does education have in the betterment of the world if it does not expand one’s capacities of love and service? We must not leave that task only to the churches, NGOs, synagogues, the UN, temples and mosques. All Nations Education believes academia must emerge on the global stage as an agent of holistic human development!

HOLISTIC EDUCATION - WESTMONT COLLEGE

RHETORIC

I experienced this kind of education at Westmont College in the U.S. in Santa Barbara, CA. At the beginning of the semester, my rhetoric professor Dr. Gregory Spencer distributed a handout that defined rhetoric in various ways: Plato dubs it “mere flattery”; Quintilian defines it as “a good man speaking well”; Aristotle describes it as a means of persuasion; but Dr. Spencer says rhetoric is “loving appropriately through speech.”

He sees his role as a Communication Studies professor as an opportunity to teach his students how to view speech and the use of words as a means to love one’s neighbor as one’s self.

He asked us questions such as, “What if everyone you speak with really does hear every word that comes out of your mouth?”; “What has been more powerful in the history of civilization than words?”

WORLD HISTORY

My history professor Dr. Chapman says in his sharp British accent, “Chaps, if you want to love the world, you must understand where it came from—thus the importance of studying history.” Then he applies this to the individual by saying that if we want to love another person, we must understand where he came from—his personal history.

WORLD RELIGIONS

My relationship with my world religions professor Dr. Charles Farhadian has taught me we must embrace our human calling to listen authentically to people who are different as one of the great secrets of peace in the world. We must genuinely listen to the perspective and background of all people, whether Muslim or Hindu, Buddhist or Jew, Christian or atheist, Asian or European, African or American.

In short, in the Christian liberal arts at Westmont College, I studied a broad spectrum of disciplines—rhetoric and communication, history and economics, philosophy and science, English and art, sociology and religion—not merely to become a fountain of facts, but instead to enhance my ability to love. This is the kind of holistic education that ANE longs for its scholars to experience.

MENTORSHIP

The other element of the gift I have received is mentors who have (and continue to) profoundly influenced my life. As a first-year student, one of my professors told me, “Josh, you will become the people you hang out with and the media you consume five years from now. So in the meantime choose wisely and be picky.” I listened. Deeply. Later I learned that the ancient philosopher Quintilian says, “every human action is an attempt to emulate someone else.”

As a result, during the past four years, I have sought out mentors whom I have naturally become. Here are a few examples:

DR. DEAN HIRSCH

I am a mentee of the President of World Vision International, Dr. Dean Hirsch. I traveled with him to Tanzania and spent time with him in his office in California to learn about the NGO arena. Here are some of the things he has said: “God doesn’t call us to be successful; He calls us to be faithful”; “Most students ride the wave. But you, you’re different, you’re a leader, you’ll create the wave—remember that.” To have someone like this—in such a high position and who has so many responsibilities and accomplishments—believe in me helps me to believe in myself.

DR. GAYLE BEEBE

I also had the privilege of meeting regularly with the President of Westmont. He taught me that to lead is to serve—that leadership involves forgiveness—that when dealing with my staff to praise in public and correct in private—that in romantic relationships, we must be compatible intellectually, spiritually and physically—that money is an integral part of life but not the essence of it. There’s much more, but for the sake of time, I’ll just say that spending time with him to talk about academics, business, women, money, and life has had an indelible mark on my life.

CONCLUSION

In short, the gifts of mentorship and education have forever changed the way I see the world. By gaining a certain kind of perspective I have naturally begun to live a certain kind of life. Westmont has taught me how to think, speak, learn and love in our vast, diverse and ever-changing world.

Imagine what Accra would be like, imagine what Ghana would be like, imagine what Africa would be like, imagine what the world would be like if we had leaders who seek not to satisfy their egos but instead who genuinely believe that the greatest among you shall be your servant! Imagine what our world would be like if we had business leaders, politician, academics, film makers, musicians who believed in and practiced loving your neighbor as yourself!

My yearning is that All Nations Education can contribute to developing these kinds of leaders through rigorous academics and life-long mentorships.


All Nations Education's scholarship recipients are connected with mentors--World Vision Sr. leaders, University Administrators, Pastors, etc.--and, in turn, the ANE scholars give that gift of mentorship to junior and senior high school students. In addition, the ANE scholars engage in community development with World Vision. So they are not only receiving, but giving.

Opportunity International Partnership

We met with Opportunity International (OI) today to discuss a potential partnership. Here's how it works: OI gives loans to individuals and groups to run and start primary (elementary) and secondary (high school) schools in Ghana. ANE's scholars will be mentors to the students at the schools that are financed by OI. They both will engage in community development with World Vision. In short, ANE scholars will attempt to set the example for the next generation to go to college and help meet Ghana's national development needs. We have not yet finalized anything with OI, but will meet with the director before we return to the U.S.

World Vision Partnership with All Nations Education

Jedd and I met with the National Director for World Vision, Ghana (WVG), today. His name is Sam, and he had a meeting with the President of Ghana after our meeting!

After explaining our program to him, he has agreed to partner with us. Here's how it's going to work: the senior leaders of WVG will act as mentors to All Nations Education's (ANE) scholars. In addition, ANE's scholars will engage in community development with WVG and become interns, thus giving back to their communities. We are expecting to have two delegates from WVG at the meeting with the University on Thursday.