My producer, Jullian Androkae, did something unusual and remarkable when he was 19 years old: He opened a library in Bekitro, his ancestral village in southern Madagascar.
That was in 2018. The library is alive and well today. Which you’ll hear about, because this episode is all about Jullian’s Vahombey Project, which built the library, furnished it, stocked it with books, and hired (and still pays) two prodigious librarians, Mme Raissa and Mme Hary, who not only serve hundreds of children a day but have turned the library into a community center.
I call the librarians prodigious because these women are anchors in a somewhat chaotic educational sea. The educational context they work in is quite different from that of the U.S. But the individual situations they deal with are similar — and damn! Raissa and Hary are ON IT! Their voices, which you’ll hear in the episode, inspire me from 10,000 miles away.
Jullian and I discuss
Giving Back: How he came up with the idea for the project
Eating Crow: How the village school handled the parents of a disruptive student
Living on Air: Some pretty incomprehensible differences between teaching in the US and in Madagascar
Holding the Line: The value of being a “harsh” librarian
Listen now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Call to Action
I love this special bonus episode, and I love the Vahombey project. So I hope you listen and enjoy.
But I also hope you click on this link to make a donation to the library. Much is needed there. More books. Dictionaries (you’ll hear that I’m obsessed with this for some reason). A TV to play English- and French-language shows so students can learn these two languages (in addition to Malagasy). Salaries. Support for wildly popular spelling bees!
The smallest donation can make a huge difference in the lives of the kids, teachers, and librarians associated with Vahombey. Check out the list of urgent needs here.
Click here to see pictures of the library, some of the kids it serves, and Jullian!
Please share this episode far and wide! The more people we reach, the better the chances that the library gets the funding it needs.
Thank you. So much.
External links
Connect & Share
Got a story to share? Have you taught outside the US? Wanna compare and contrast? I’d love to hear! Leave me a voicemail at (413) 239-4158 and we might feature your perspective in a future episode!
Or send me an email! betsy@teachingthroughemotions.com
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Credits
Founder and Host: Betsy Burris
Co-Host: Joe Johnson
Producer: Jullian Androkae of PodVision
Audience Development: Andreea Coscai of PodVision
Music: Tom Burris/Jabbering Trout
