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.
