Congregation of African Sisters Travels to Philadelphia to Receive Technology Training at Chestnut Hill College on September 28th

Business Wire, Sept 23, 2004

PHILADELPHIA -- Training Part of African Sisters Education Collaborative United States Conference

On September 28th, 14 women religious from Africa will take part in a full-day of computer skills training and other technology-oriented sessions at Chestnut Hill College. The training is part of an ongoing effort by the African Sisters Education Collaborative (ASEC) to assist African sisters who are working to improve the course of life in their countries. The ASEC, whose charter members include the Presidents and Congregational Leaders from Chestnut Hill College and the Sisters of St. Joseph, Neumann College and the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia, Rosemont College and the Society of the Holy Child Jesus, and Marywood University and the Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary of Scranton, formed more than four years ago to address the educational needs of the women religious in Africa.

The ASEC strives to increase access to education in Africa by helping to educate women religious and enabling them to acquire the necessary credentials for teaching, healthcare, spiritual or social service ministries in their countries. While many of these women have completed their primary education, they lack secondary and professional education. Over the past four years, members of the ASEC have been meeting regularly and conducting site visits in East and West Africa to assess education, facility and technology needs. From September 25th to October 1st, sisters from Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda will attend the ASEC's United States Conference at the St. Raphael Center for Spiritual Growth in Haverford, Pa. The conference will provide a forum for the colleges and congregations and the African sisters to continue their planning and needs assessment and ultimately prepare for the next phase of providing secondary education to sisters in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda, and tertiary education in Ghana and Nigeria.

On the third day of the conference, the sisters will receive computer skills training from faculty members at Chestnut Hill College. So that the sisters can bring the lessons learned back to their countries, each woman will receive a laptop computer to bring back with her to Africa. The laptops are being donated by the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. The day will end with services at Fournier Chapel. The president of Chestnut Hill College, Carol Jean Vale, SSJ, also serves as the Chair of the ASEC.

"As a charter member of the African Sisters Education Collaborative, Chestnut Hill College is very proud to participate in this meeting of African sisters and the leaders of member colleges and religious congregations," said Vale. "Over the past four years, we have made great strides toward the implementation of a pilot project designed to provide higher education for the women religious of Africa. The results of this conference will give us a greater understanding of exactly what needs to be done, not just in terms of educational assistance and technological preparedness, but also financially, to achieve our goals in Africa."

The long-term goal of ASEC is to provide the African Sisters the needed education in their own countries and cultures. While African sisters have studied at American Colleges, many of these women do not want to return to their country at the completion of their education or they return home to find that the position they were preparing for has been filled. By supporting initiatives like "Project Bigwa School of Tanzania," which will provide secondary education for several hundred sisters from 22 religious congregations, the ASEC is working to establish a foundation in Africa. In addition to assisting in the education of the sisters at the Bigwa School, the ASEC also is helping to raise the funds for the facilities.

About Chestnut Hill College

Chestnut Hill College is a four-year coed Catholic college offering a traditional liberal arts undergraduate program, as well as accelerated undergraduate degrees, master's and doctoral programs. Since its inception, the College has offered a rigorous curriculum that provides students with a broad background in the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences. The goal of Chestnut Hill College has been to prepare students for life's challenges by helping them to grow intellectually, spiritually, emotionally, and socially.