At the beginning of February, in response to a communication from the Cherkassy Institute for Education, Vic Jackopson will go to several Cherkassy orphanages to see for himself the progress of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) project, which has been running for more than two years. He will also spend time with key personnel to plan the first week long camp for 50 of the NCLB orphans. This will take place at Kompas Park, the first week of June.

Key to the success of this programme has been the NCLB teachers in every Internat in the Cherkassy Oblast, who are paid for by Hope Now. Relationships formed by them with the students, allows the children to grow in confidence and to explore new concepts. Here is an excerpt from Coordinator, Tanya Pakhomova??™s report.

Babanka orphans enjoy Hope Now computers

"Many children's lives are being improved by this project. Because of this programme, the children will become productive citizens who have learned to socialise and adjust to the world. Twenty-three teachers met with me once a month for training and feedback. They reported their success and challenges. We discussed possible solutions, listened to advice from education experts and kept a record of the main issues.

The research paper was published and distributed to the (Government sponsored) Conference. We received many positive comments from the Ministry of Education and Science. The publication has become an operations manual and a vehicle for spreading ways to help children.

The Ukrainian Education channel produced two programmes about NCLB. They were entitled, "Children Are Our Future" and "How Can We Help Our Children". The Community Radio Channel now has a weekly programme entitled "No child left behind", that deals with the latest news from 23 orphanages.

I was invited to the American Embassy in Kyiv to meet the Secretary of Education from the United States, Margaret Spelling. The purpose of the meeting was to bring her up to date with the progress of NCLB. Secretary Spelling authored the NCLB programme in the States.

We plan on continuing the good work of NCLB in co-operation with your organisation. If possible, we request additional funding to buy teaching materials. We would also like to hold a joint meeting with all 366 children involved. We look forward to working with you in the future."

Because of the cost of 160 Pounds per child, for the camp, paid staff and new materials, it was decided to start with only 50 children. We would like to find 50 people who will sponsor one child each. This is a small price to pay for the future of a child. 55% of orphans are made homeless on leaving institutional life. 10% commit suicide before they are twenty. Education is one of the keys to dramatically reducing such appalling statistics.

The Cherkassy Institute for Education appreciates that for Hope Now another key is the spiritual development of each child. How good it is that the organisation has free access to all the orphanages of the region to bring hope and blessing.

Please pray for the continuing development of NCLB and for the children it effects.