Ongoing AfterSchool Tutoring for 70 orphans in BIH

BOSANA FOUNDATION

After School Program Report

October 2023 Report

We are excited to share with you our latest report for this quarter!

In the previous quarter, from October 2023 to January 2024, we launched a pilot After School Program in Mostar, one more city in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was initiated as a result of the program's motivation and empowerment. We are thrilled to announce that it will positively impact 18 out of 50 children and youth without parental care in Mostar.

In this report, we will provide you with a comprehensive overview of notable accomplishments and activities in our programs located in Zenica, Tuzla, and Sarajevo.

Currently, over 80 children are benefiting from our After School Program, and we have 15 scholarship holders actively volunteering in all four cities where our program is being implemented.

Your continued support will help us reach even more children and youth in need. Together, we can make a lasting difference.

Please read on for a detailed and succinct overview of all the latest news from the previous months.

After school program in Mostar 

The youth association "IUVENTUS", our partner, has been successfully running a program in Sarajevo for the past three years, achieving notable results.

Thanks to their dedication, the idea of starting a new program in Mostar was realized.

Currently, three Bosana scholarship holders are volunteering in Mostar to assist with implementing the project.

Additionally, a ward from the Children's Home in Mostar is providing assistance with the project's execution. You can click HERE to check their activities!

This approach highlights the program's benefits as the children from the home not only participate in the activities but also gain practical experience by being involved in the program's implementation.

After school program in Sarajevo 

The AfterSchool Program in Sarajevo is continuing with its regular activities from the previous period. The main focus of teaching is on academic subjects such as mathematics, physics, English, and Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian language. The physics and chemistry classes that were introduced earlier have become necessary and the practice of giving instructions from them continues. The program also conducts monthly workshops, including piano lessons, jewelry making, origami, and a general knowledge quiz.

Since October, four new volunteers have officially joined, bringing the total number of volunteers to seven. Even after completing the Bosana scholarship program, scholarship recipients continue to volunteer in the program. 

Some updates from the past period include:

1. The introduction of a database for instructional teaching, which makes the monitoring of work easier for           both volunteers and employees in the home.

2. The establishment of a database for creative workshops.

3. The creation of a database for excursions.

The new program assistant for Sarajevo and Mostar is an alumni scholarship holder of Bosnia. This confirms the quality of work and trust in the program's vision and mission. Volunteers undergo training and educational workshops to ensure that they are well-prepared to work with this vulnerable group.

Despite the ongoing reorganization within the orphanage, classes are still available for daycare children and children with developmental disabilities.

After school program in Zenica 

The After School Program in Zenica has expanded its volunteer capacity by welcoming two new members who are Bosana 2023/24 scholarship recipients studying medicine and Economics, Finance and Accounting at the University of Zenica.

In the given period, we had five volunteer instructors who achieved incredible engagement for a large number of students. On average, 50 students attended the After School Program activities.

We conducted instructive classes in mathematics, physics, chemistry, foreign languages, non-formal education, and motivation of children and young people in the field of STEM. We also introduced them to the basics of programming, 3D modeling, and the use of basic CNC machines. We held workshops three times a week for an hour and a half.

During the summer vacation (July and August), we did not conduct instructional classes in full, but we had 10 students who wanted to prepare for the upcoming school year.

At the beginning of the 2023/2024 school year, we witnessed great interest from elementary school students in instructional classes. 40 of them, aged between 7 and 14 years, attended the classes.

In July, August, and September, we organized various activities to keep children and young people engaged and entertained. We conducted an info session on Bosana Foundation scholarships and organized competitions and tournaments in table tennis and table football for children and young people at the "Dom porodica" Zenica.

Around 50 children and young people participated in these activities.

Despite the high level of inspiration that the volunteer instructors gave to the children during classes, we faced difficulty due to the lack of a permanent room to conduct instruction. This problem is not new and has been persistent even before the home renovation.

After school program in Tuzla

Over the past period, we encountered several challenges while working with children from the Tuzla Children's Home. Despite the obstacles posed by the frequent movement, departure, and return of the children, we strived to find solutions and continue our work without disruption.

We also noted a significant increase in the number of abandoned babies, almost double the previous amount. This made it challenging to carry out our activities with primary and secondary school students under various circumstances.

To overcome these challenges, we planned some fun interactive activities that catered to all age groups. Our scholarship volunteers in Tuzla helped us organize music and interactive workshops for the children.

In December, we will organize a film evening activity to celebrate World Human Rights Day on December 10th. The event will be held in collaboration with the BoHeMSA Medical Students' Association and will feature educational games and entertainment.

Our volunteer scholar, a local official at the Committee for Human Rights and Peace, believes that this is a great opportunity to connect the topic of human rights with working with children. This is especially important for medical students who plan to actively work with children and young people. Six out of our seven scholarship holders are studying medicine, so this is an excellent opportunity for them to gain skills in working with young people.

This initiative will help us address the issue of a smaller number of volunteers and a large number of constantly changing children. We will be able to create a concrete and stable annual plan for working with children and young people.

Links:

• After School Program - MOSTAR