[ Check out photos taken at ACEJ ]

[ Interesting photos, including wildlife, taken in Rwanda ]

 In October-November 2003, my friend Kevin Stalder and I [Claver] went to Rwanda for vacation. Kevin's main  interest in Rwanda was to see the wildlife.  I took advantage of this trip to travel all around Rwanda with Kevin, but my other important goal was to visit my family, and finalize the project of setting up a computer laboratory for Association de la Culture et de l'Education de la Jeunesse (ACEJ) I started two years ago. ACEJ is a high school located in Mushubati, Gitarama province, Rwanda. The main objective of ACEJ is to promote culture and education of youth. I attended the same school in 1990-1993 with a major in accounting.

I started the project of collecting used computers for ACEJ in the summer of 2000 when I went back to Rwanda for vacation with my friend Roger Jacobson, a retired business teacher of Ames High School in Ames, Iowa. At that time Roger donated many books of business to ACEJ and the school is very grateful for that. The school was and is still in need of several things, including computers. In 2000, ACEJ had only one outdated computer and a matrix printer that were used by the secretary. Ninety eight percent of word processing and printing were done using mechanic typewriters, stencil machine, and stencil paper. However, this process was very inefficient and ineffective. Students were taught keyboarding using old typewriters the school owned prior the civil war of 1994. I returned to the USA with a determination of collecting and sending used computers for this school. I wanted not only to replace their obsolete typewriters, but also I wanted to make students learn skills they can apply on the job market.

Computers are increasingly becoming a common tool successfully used by businesses and offices around the country. There is no need to mention that Rwandan students need to learn computer skills that are essential to their future careers. The project provided thirty computer systems.  Twenty four of these computers have been installed in the computer lab used by students, whereas  the remaining six have been installed in school offices. All of the computers in the lab have Windows 98 SE and Office 97. In addition, they are linked together using three  hubs and two printers.  

ACEJ established its first and largest computer lab in the country. Thanks to Central Iowa Computer User Group (CIACUG), other organizations and several individuals supporting the education in developing countries. CIACUG collects used computers from other institutions and individuals. They fix these machines and donate them to needy schools, institutions and individuals. I thank Dan Buda, Bob Lawrence, George Arvidson and Helen Struve members and leaders of CIACUG, for their effort to collect and  fix computers that were sent to ACEJ. They not only made sure that these computers were functional, but also they helped pack and ship them. Glenn Cannon, General Manager of Waverly Light and Power (WLP) in Waverly, Iowa and his coworkers are among of individuals who made this project become successful. Through Glenn, I connected with Lisa Daniel, Community Relations at FedEx Corporation, who helped with transportation of these machines from Ankeny, Iowa to Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

I would like to acknowledge some other people for contributing to better educate Rwandan students, including Roger Jacobson and Kevin Stalder. As I mentioned earlier, Roger visited and donated many books to ACEJ in the summer of 2000. In addition, he continuously helped me work on this project of getting computers for my former high school until its completion. On October 16th, 2003, Kevin Stalder also visited and gave a talk to ACEJ students and personnel.  Kevin's talk was about his personal experience in Rwanda compared to his home state of Iowa. He left long and lasting memories to the students and himself. He carefully  listened to the students' questions and comments. He left Rwanda with a determination to help the school as much as he can. Currently, he is working on collecting English dictionaries and books and arranging to find pen pals for ACEJ students at various high schools in Iowa. To date, Kevin has already collected hundreds of books and will be shipping them to Gitarama soon. Furthermore, he has found many students who are ready to start writing to ACEJ students.

The computer lab at ACEJ opened on November 21st, 2003. The opening started with my presentation untitled "The Future of Computing Technologies at ACEJ high School". I had the opportunity to talk to the audience including leaders of the school, teachers, and students. The feedback I got from them is impressive and encouraging.  After my talk, we went to the school computer lab to start running these machines, a culmination of many people's efforts over a two year period.  Later, the ceremony was concluded by a very nice reception.

On November 23, 2003, I came back to the US and will be starting a Masters of Science in Information Systems program at Dakota State University (DSU) in January 2004. Besides getting ready for school, I am assisting Kevin as much as I can so that he will accomplish a new educational project for Rwandan high school students.

Claver P. Hategekimana
December 12, 2003.

Check out photos below taken at ACEJ.

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