Success Stories

Amideast’s Professional Certificate in English Language Teaching (PCELT) program is being deployed to improve the level of English language instruction in Morocco’s public school system. The National PCELT Initiative, which is funded by the U.S. Embassy in Rabat and implemented in coordination with Morocco’s Ministry of National Education, aims to prepare a cadre of 84 leading ministry trainers and inspectors to play a critical role in improving English language teaching practices throughout the country.

CODING AND ROBOTICS FOR KIDS

Experts advocate that children get an early start in STEM, and coding and robotics programs can be a great entry point for many related topics. In addition to learning concepts of robotics and programming, young learners also benefit from an interactive and collaborative learning environment that enhances their problem-solving, critical thinking, and teamwork skills. When taught in English, coding and robotics programs additionally prepare them for STEM training at higher levels.

Some obstacles for Yemeni students are not new. With a pre-war per capita GDP of less than $2,000 per year, almost no Yemeni family can afford to send a child abroad for higher education. Only the few opportunities currently extant for Yemeni students, such as Amideast’s Diana Kamal Scholarship Search Fund (DKSSF), offer the hope of securing a funded study-abroad experience.

With over 500 friends and supporters in attendance, Amideast celebrated the achievements of its five decades of service in Lebanon at a Golden Gala on November 29 at the Seaside Pavilion on Beirut’s New Waterfront.

What students needed, Palestinian leaders recognized in the mid-2000s, were schools for the 21st century. Since 2007, Amideast has responded, working in partnership with the Palestinian Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE), to implement three USAID-projects that have brought much-needed support for and investment in basic education in the West Bank.

Model Schools Network

Throughout these 15 years, YES students recruited through Amideast have created lasting friendships in all 50 states, volunteered thousands of hours of their time, and have developed robust alumni programming in their home communities. They continue to create meaningful multicultural relationships and share their knowledge of their home cultures and the United States.

The project is training 600 young men and women between the ages of 18 and 30 in a variety of vocational, professional, and business skills in areas such as computer-aided design, refrigeration, hydraulics, plumbing, medical machinery maintenance, and renewable energy (solar installation). In addition, the project links youth to mentors in their communities and supports activities that encourage their involvement in community rebuilding and the country’s restoration and recovery.

As a scalable, customizable program, Skills for Success has proven to be effective for reaching trainees within the 16–30 age range, including underserved women, secondary school and university graduates, and those living in diverse settings and rural locations that are harder to reach.