Jiashan Partnership Project
Every individual matters. Every individual has a role to play. Every individual makes a difference. -Jane Goodall
WAB is committed to the ideal that individuals and communities can positively make a difference in the lives of others. When the violent earthquake hit Gansu Province in May 2008, the entire WAB community rose to action in a compassionate outpouring of support to offer a brighter future for Jiashan Primary School in Hui County, a mountainous region hard-hit by the disaster.
With the school building threatening to collapse, the government ordered Jiashan to be condemned and torn down. WAB students, staff and parents responded wholeheartedly by organizing several fundraising events, supplying the financial support for the construction of a new school building. The new Jiashan Primary School is scheduled for completion in the spring of 2010.
The rebuilding of the school is merely the first step in a long-term sustainable partnership involving WAB, Jiashan Primary School, the Longnan Municipality and the World Bank. What began as a wish to help a school in need has truly evolved into the kind of collaboration that WAB had hoped for from the outset.
Students and staff throughout WAB are finding ways to become engaged in the project; further developing the bond between the two schools. These grassroots initiatives, along with the creation of the Founding Board and Staff/Student Project Committee ensure that this will be a valuable and sustainable relationship for both schools.
The Founding Board is comprised of the WAB Director, a WAB Board of Trustees member, a WAB teacher, a WAB host country staff member, a WAB parent, and two WAB students. There are three additional WAB staff members acting in ex-officio capacity.
The Project Committee is made up of ten members to include five students and five teachers. The group is organized around five project committees: Education, Sports and Recreation, Technology, Fine Arts and Facilities. The Teacher/Student Project Team members co-chair the sub-committees which are comprised of students and teachers. To see the current Founding Board/Project Committee Structural Chart, click here.
For the full story on the development of the partnership and to learn more about the exciting student-led initiatives, please view the Director's Podcast on the right side of this page and read the following articles: "WAB Rebuilds Hope for Earthquake Damaged School" and "Jiashan Primary School Project: Building a Solid Foundation".
If you are interested in giving to the Jiashan Partnership Project, please contact Trish Smith, WAB Development Director at tsmith@wab.edu.
Thanks to heaven and earth, our dream finally came true with your help. We will remember your deep love forever. Your help to reconstruct our school will be great motivation for us to study diligently, and all our students will redouble their efforts to cherish this great opportunity and study hard to serve society in the future! -Luo Dandan, grade 5 student at Jiashan Primary School
This will be a WAB-driven project and we want it to be an authentic learning experience, especially for our students. -Robert Landau, Director of WAB
The complimentary cooperation of the World Bank and WAB in assisting the schools of Hui County to recover from the Wenchuan Earthquake is about more than just building back better. This is about making a difference in the long term development of a rural community hard hit by a natural disaster. -John Scales, World Bank representative, WAB Board member and parent
