It is a Graduation Sensation!

Class Representative Therese Mugorewera offered moving remarks about the achievements of her classmates. “We learned to care about ourselves!” she exclaimed, adding that her class has gained vital knowledge of global markets and mastered crucial computer skills. The director of the program, Rosine Urujeni, noted with pride that the graduates can now use computers with the same ease as tech-savvy 20-year-olds.

It’s astonishing to see the transformation of these women. Only a few years ago, they were sick and destitute, bearing the open wounds of their country’s brutal 1994 genocide. Many couldn’t afford the medicine they needed and had little hope for survival. But since joining the Same Sky community, artisans have soared from surviving to thriving. Today, their faces beam with pride and glow with health. They’ve mastered a trade, earned financial security - and are on their way to becoming great business leaders and entrepreneurs. For these Same Sky artisans, the simple act of writing an email used to be an impossibility; now they possess the knowledge to grow their own tech-friendly businesses, in true 21st century fashion. 

Happily, for some Same Sky artisans, the completion of their second level business studies is just one step on a longer journey. We’re excited to announce that three Same Sky scholars will go on to advanced business training, where they’ll develop even more specialized knowledge and skills.

We’re also thrilled to cheer on the members of this year’s graduating class who recently formed their own women’s cooperative, called Umwezi. Such entrepreneurial tenacity is exactly what Same Sky strives to foster in its artisans.

We at Same Sky believe that educating women has a ripple effect that goes beyond individual growth and self-reliance. To educate a woman is to improve her family, her community, and her world. Or, in the words of Same Sky’s newly minted graduate, Therese Mugorewera: “If you help a woman, you help a whole country.” Congratulations again to Same Sky’s 2016 Business Scholars!

Each year, Same Sky provides scholarships to Same Sky artisans to study business leadership, the global marketplace, and computer skills. To donate to the Same Sky Foundation, visit www.samesky.com.