The connections and positive impacts of the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) are long-lasting and touch the lives and careers of both our international visitors and American counterparts. These are just a few of their stories.

June Chua

Founder, The T Project in Singapore. IVLP Participant in a Multi-Regional Project titled “Resilient Societies: Strengthening Minority Gender Communities” in June 2018.

June Chua, a transgender woman, was inspired by her 2018 IVLP experience. Equipped with new knowledge and connections, she established the first transgender shelter in Singapore. During her visit to the United States, Chua found that in one state alone there could…

September 8 is International Literacy Day, designated by UNESCO to remind us of the importance of literacy as a matter of dignity and human rights, and to advance toward a more literate and sustainable society. We focus on two World Learning literacy programs, in Lebanon and Morocco, aimed at promoting and supporting this essential mission.

QITABI 2 Summer Program Tackles Wide-Ranging Needs of Lebanon’s Schoolchildren

By Dr. Wafa Kotob and Rajani Shrestha

Students of all ages crowded the small entrance of Omareyya Elementary Public School in Zahle, South Lebanon looking forward to the in-person educational activity they have not had for almost two years. …

Lebanon’s education sector has struggled to overcome numerous challenges over the past two years, including an unstable political environment, disruptive street protests, dramatic devaluation of the Lebanese lira, and the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced an abrupt shift to online schooling.

To meet these new demands, USAID has adapted the Quality Instruction Towards Access and Basic Education Improvement (QITABI) 2 program to dynamically address the education sector’s changing needs and support the move to distance learning.

The program embraces USAID’s longstanding commitment to the sustainable development of Lebanon’s education sector. It is a successor to QITABI 1, which…

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the whole world was forced to pivot to new ways of doing things, World Learning was able to use its long-standing expertise in online and hybrid teaching and training. At the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES) conference, World Learning staff discussed projects focused on professional development for teachers and workforce development, all of which had to abruptly pivot to online programming early in the pandemic. Their presentations reviewed the opportunities this presented to refine and improve programs as well as the challenges they faced in quickly shifting to virtual programming.

Enhancing Online Learning with Local Peer Coaching Groups

Lois Scott-Conley…

At Jezzine Primary School in the mountains of south Lebanon, first-grade Arabic language teacher Mary Bou-Rached holds weekly read-aloud sessions for students. She picks two students every week to read stories and ask their classmates comprehension questions.

With 186 students, Jezzine Primary School is one of 887 primary public schools in Lebanon receiving support from USAID’s education sector programs Quality Instruction Towards Access and Basic Education Improvement (QITABI) 1 and 2. The school is among 30 inclusive schools selected by Lebanon’s Ministry of Education to provide tailored support to students with special educational needs.

“The read-aloud sessions invite students to…

While women have made significant strides in pursuing science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) occupations, they remain underrepresented in these high-paying careers: data from a recent UNESCO report indicates that only 35 percent of STEM students in higher education globally are women, and women make up fewer than 30 percent of the world’s researchers.

Several recent Fulbright Specialists are among the many women in STEM working with universities, government ministries, non-profits, and other institutions around the world to promote science education to the next generation and serving as role models for girls and young women alike.

Alicia Santiago is a…

Youth in El Salvador face a multitude of challenges in accessing education and training opportunities and entering the workforce. In June 2021, World Learning and partner ITCA-FEPADE, a Salvadoran educational institution, held a series of focus groups with more than 90 youth from across the country to learn more about their experiences in education and employment. Titled “New opportunities in the face of current reality,” (report in Spanish) the events offered an opportunity for young people to contribute their perspectives on the challenges facing youth as well as potential solutions.

“This effort at youth outreach is the first step in…

By Meghan Burland, Chief of Party, Leaders Advancing Democracy (LEAD) Mongolia

Mongolia’s June 9 presidential elections marked the country’s third round of voting in 13 months. While voter turnout was historically low, likely due to an increase in COVID-19 cases in the days preceding the election, 59 percent of eligible voters came out to elect former Prime Minister U. Khurelsukh from the Mongolian People’s Party to a six-year term as president.

As with the previous parliamentary and local elections, alumni from the USAID-funded Leaders Advancing Democracy (LEAD) program used their training to support the election process by serving as civil…