Give the Gift of Data

Internet connectivity remains AFSO's greatest expense and the most necessary component of our program. When Afghanistan experienced a 3-day internet outage in September, we began an ongoing investigation into alternative forms of connection, any of which will require significant investment. Meanwhile, though, with connection restored, we are supplying a lifeline to students whose lives would be utterly cut off otherwise. 

Our classes are synchronous, meaning that students and professors meet in real time, with the chance to probe issues, answer questions, and advance knowledge in a real classroom environment. Our students report that they have found their academic community again, after years of being trapped in their homes by Taliban policies.

Most exciting this year is the initiation of the Bard Global BA, an American-accredited online undergraduate degree in which 6 of our best students are participating, with others in preparation for September 2026. As full-time college students, these young women require four times the amount of data to access their credit-bearing classes, and AFSO is committed to ensuring their connectivity. So the gift of data is more important than ever!

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To our generous donors:

Data remains the single greatest cost at AFSO, and also the single greatest gift we can give our students. One example: Our student Nadia was trying to live alone in the city in order to access the internet and take classes. But the Taliban continually harassed her, bursting into her small apartment without notice and demanding to know what she was doing, where her family was, why she wasn't married. Finally she felt so threatened that she had to retreat to her ancestral village, where there is no electricity or internet. It took her two days to walk there over stony roads, barefoot, and it took three weeks for her feet to heal.

As soon as she could, Nadia climbed the mountain outside the village, where she could get a cell phone signal, and texted to say that if we would send her data, she would climb the mountain twice a week in order to attend class. 

Sufficient data for our 800 students in Afghanistan to attend remote classes costs $20/month per student, or a total of $160,000/year. We have raised $80,000 toward this goal. Please help us get the rest of the way and help students like Nadia complete their university education so they can forge their future and help their country when the moment arrives.

With thanks for all you do,

The AFSO Team 

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