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Positive Planet, a charitable 501(c) organization began in the October 2003. Positive Planet co-founder Marc Sklar began the project after working in the Rakai District of Uganda doing public health research. Marc found that while the government of Uganda guarantees a free primary education, funding is extremely limited. The primary schools Marc visited were in desperate need of support, with dedicated staffs of teachers working for $1 per day, class sizes of 70 and more, often meeting under trees or in dangerously dilapidated buildings, and no books and scarce educational supplies available.
The initial idea was simple: partner primary schools in this rural region of Uganda with schools, both public and private, in the New York metropolitan area. Beginning with our first sister school partnership the Hannah Senesh Community Day School and the St. Andrews Matale Hill Primary School, this program has grown steadily to five school partnerships. Over $30,000 has been raised by our U.S. sister school communities. In partnership with our Ugandan school communities, we have constructed new classrooms, repaired crumbling buildings, installed electricity as well as established rainwater harvesting systems to ensure safe drinking water for our children.
With each year Positive Planet has steadily grown and expanded the scope of our work. In addition to supporting the fundraising activities of our U.S. sister schools and providing technical support to our Ugandan partners, we now provide our American students an opportunity to learn more about life in Uganda through the use of our Africa/Uganda curriculum and the Positive Planet website. We continue to support on-going pen pal relationships between our sister school communities and have plans to strengthen these community ties by helping to bring access to the Internet to our Ugandan school communities which will also be a valuable educational tool for all of our students.
Building and strengthening communities, whether it is developing working partnerships with our Ugandan communities or expanding our American children’s sense of community responsibility is at the core of our mission.
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