I don't yet have the picture of the smiling women who were handed their diplomas yesterday, but here's a diploma of someone who missed graduation day (click on picture to enlarge.)
My favorite "graduate" wasn't even at the end of her program. But our teacher gave her a diploma as a sort of "Ms. Congeniality" for her enthusiasm and good example. Our awardee is 82 years old, and has just finished her first year of Arabic literacy classes. We look forward to seeing her back next fall.
It can't be repeated often enough: our shoestring women's literacy program is one of the best "bang for buck" investments that TALIM – and its Moroccan partners in the Fondation Tanger al-Madina (FTAM) – have been making for the past dozen or so years. Hundreds of women have completed not only Arabic literacy classes, but learned practical life skills (cooking, sewing, foreign languages) that have led to employment. It's a big contribution to improving conditions in this distressed part of Tangier.
Gerald Loftus
