[Lekooks] Peace Corp Project - Alex Morgan in Nicaragua

[Barbara Hoel]

*Dear Friends,*

*Our daughter has asked us to share this with you.  Some of you remember
her well, others are being introduced to her for the first time through
this letter. Suffice it to say, we are very proud of Alex and hope you are
able to support her in anyway possible.*

*Thanks, Barbara Hoel and Paul Fackler*

.......................................................................

Hiya friends and family,

You might be wondering what I've been up to the last 20 months. It's true,
I haven't been great at reaching out. That's mostly because of limited
internet availability. Here's a bit more about what I'm working on now!

As an entrepreneurship education volunteer with the Peace Corps in
Nicaragua, I spend my days teaching rural students how to manage money, get
creative, and start their own businesses. Nicaragua is the 2nd poorest
country in Latin America, and its educations system also ranks second to
last. Students face a myriad of obstacles trying to advance: from high
schools hours away by bus or walking, to a lack of books, and limited
access to higher education. Despite the many challenges, students are
excited to learn about business. While the importance of trigonometric
functions may seem far off, most students' parents or families run a small
business, so learning basic administration is a priority.

Fifteen years ago, a Peace Corps volunteer started teaching
entrepreneurship education to a youth group as a side project. The project
became so well-known that it made it's way into Nicaragua's high school
curriculum. This year, we're celebrating a legacy of hard work done by
generations of Nicaraguan teachers and Peace Corps volunteers.

However, maintaining this legacy is a tough task. In order to motivate
students and teachers, Peace Corps Nicaragua holds a national business
competition. In previous years, part of the funding for the competition has
come from our project funds, but this year, we're facing a 5% budget cut.
That doesn't mean much for our day to day operations, but it makes projects
that require grants just a bit harder.

As Peace Corps volunteers, we pride ourselves on providing technical
service. We're teachers, and like teachers in the U.S., we spend our own
funds to try and make great classroom resources, and ensure that classwork
is engaging and project based. Some projects require a bit more than that
though, and we can't afford to bring students together from across the
country without your help.

The National Entrepreneurship Fair brings together 72 competing students,
24 student business leaders, and 24 teachers to bring projects to the next
level. Student groups compete for seed money, while receiving in-depth
training in topics that go beyond the scope of the national
entrepreneurship curriculum. They leave with the skills and the plan
necessary to start their own businesses.

In order to make this competition happen, *we need to raise $9,600 in the
next month. *Click here
<https://donate.peacecorps.gov/donate/project/national-entrepreneurship-competition-2017/>
to
help us out, or forward the link on to friends and family! Every bit helps!

[image: Inline image 1]


-- 
Alexandra E. Morgan
Small Business Advisor
Peace Corps Nicaragua
San Ramón, Matagalpa, Nicaragua
505.8855.0184
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