As PCVs we can connect kids to scholarships they would never have! Alana serving in the Brong Ahafo region of Ghana shares her success story.

I first found out about Africa's Tomorrow (http://www.africastomorrow.org/) through a post on the Peace Corps Ghana facebook page. Started by a Ghana RPCV, the program selects three to six girls each year from rural areas throughout the entire continent of Africa and offers them an interest free loan to go to university in America. The loan is 100% forgiven provided the girl returns to her home country within six months of graduation; if she chooses not to return immediately, she can instead opt to pay back the loan in monthly installments until she chooses to return, at which time the remaining debt is forgiven. Africa's Tomorrow aims to select candidates who want to further their education so that they can use it to improve lives in their home countries.

When I first heard about this program I immediately thought of my student Nihad. She was one of the smartest girls I had ever met, a leader in many clubs at the school, and a debate national champion. I discussed the program with her and she immediately expressed interest. She wanted to go and study business administration with three goals in mind: 1) Start a business in her home town near Wa to provide employment. 2) Focus on employing women as a way of empowering them and encouraging girl child education in an area it is not considered necessary. 3) Become a lecturer at SHSs and universities to share her knowledge with her community.

After an application which involved four essays by her, four essays by me, a letter of recommendation from another teacher, and her school records, followed by a month and a half of waiting, I recieved an email from Africa's Tomorrow. Nihad was one of six women selected this year, and the only one from Ghana (other represented countries include Lesotho, Swaziland, and Cameroon). Needless to say, there was a large amount of celebrating going on that day!

The process is still ongoing. Now Nihad will have to take the TOEFL, apply to the university (the program partners with Berea College in Kentucky but she can apply to other schools as well), apply for a passport and visa, and prepare herself for a huge new chapter in her life! If all goes according to plan, Nihad will be studying stateside starting fall 2014.

-Alana