Habele

The organization was founded by a group of former Peace Corps volunteers who served in Micronesia, and it received IRS nonprofit status in September 2006."Habele Outer Island Education Fund 2006 Annual Report" accessed April 25, 2007.[http://www.habele.org/documents/Habele2006AnnualReport.pdf] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928190752/http://www.habele.org/documents/Habele2006AnnualReport.pdf |date=2007-09-28 }} The charity has no salaried employees, relying on volunteers, donors and educators in the US and across Micronesia."Habele group award $5K scholarships to islanders" Pacific Daily News, September 7, 2008.[http://www.guampdn.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080908/NEWS01/809080316/1002]{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Habele's initial geographic focus was the so-called "Outer Islands" of Ulithi, Woleai, and Satawal, Eauripik, Ifalik, and Lamotrek in Yap State as well as lagoon and outer islands in neighboring Chuuk state."CHUUK, YAP ISLANDERS AWARDED SCHOLARSHIPS" East West Center, September 3, 2008.[http://pidp.eastwestcenter.org/pireport/2008/September/09-03-rl2.htm] Beginning in 2013, the nonprofit expanded to serve Micronesian students of all backgrounds throughout the entire Federated States of Micronesia (FSM)."Scholarships Awarded to Micronesian Students," Marianas Variety, July 19, 2012.[http://www.mvariety.com/regional-news/palaupacific-news/48088-scholarships-awarded-to-micronesian-students.php] and into neighboring Palau and the Marshall Islands. In contrast to bilateral aid provided by the US Government to Micronesia's public sector through the Compact of Free Association ,

Habele targets support for local schools and civil society, emphasizing competition, incentives, and ownership in order to "change attitudes and expectations" among community members.""Habele Outer Island Education Fund provides scholarships for FSM "outer islanders"" The Kaselehlie Press, September 10, 2013. [http://archive-fm.com/fm/w/www.fm/2013-12-21_3385459_22/Grant_donated_to_promotion_of_alternative_fishing_method_in_Chuuk_State_by_Government_of_Japan/] One former US diplomat described the organization as "fulfilling a unique and critical role in FSM's development."{{cite news |title=Scholarships highlight student achievement, US-Micronesian ties |url=https://mvariety.com/news/scholarships-highlight-student-achievement-us-micronesian-ties/article_ed87ebc2-eaae-11eb-bcbf-db48ec7335d0.html |access-date=23 July 2021 |volume=50|issue=129 |publisher=Abed Younis |date=23 July 2023}}

The fund awards scholarships to students attending primary and secondary private schools and provides material donations to small public schools. In the first year of operation $2,890 in scholarships were awarded. Scholarships for 2007-08 exceeded $3,500.{{cite web|title=Habele Fund Awards FSM Scholarships |work=Pacific Magazine Online |date=August 4, 2007 |url=http://www.pacificmagazine.net/news/2007/08/04/habele-fund-awards-fsm-scholarships |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071008071537/http://www.pacificmagazine.net/news/2007/08/04/habele-fund-awards-fsm-scholarships |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 8, 2007 }} The issuance of scholarships in 2008–09, exceeding $5,000, was described by the Peace Corps Micronesia Country Director as "particularly important" for expanding education opportunities because students living outside Micronesia's four state capitals have very limited access to formal education options.{{cite journal |title=Six Outer Islanders Receive Scholarships From U.S. Fund |journal=Pacific Magazine Online |date=September 7, 2008 |url=http://www.pacificmagazine.net/news/2008/09/03/six-outer-islanders-receive-scholarships-from-us-fund}}{{dead link|date=December 2015}} A total of 21 scholarships were issued for the 2010–11 school year.{{cite web |title=Habele awards 21 scholarships to Micronesian students |work=PR Newswire |date=August 3, 2010 |url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/habele-awards-21-scholarships-to-micronesian-students-99858859.html |access-date=December 26, 2015}}

South Carolina State Senators Glenn McConnell and Robert Ford of Charleston, South Carolina drew attention to Habele, when the charity announced $7,500 in scholarships for sixteen elementary and high school students in 2009.{{cite web |title=Senators McConnell and Ford Praise Micronesian Scholarships |work=Lowcountry Today |date=August 10, 2009 |url=http://lowcountrybizsc.whosonthemove.com/senators-mcconnell-and-ford-praise-micronesian-scholarships/ |access-date=December 26, 2015}} Louis J. Rama, a senior consul at the Federated States of Micronesia Consulate on Guam, called for the expansion of this and other programs supporting low-income students through tuition assistance.{{cite news |title=Scholarships awarded to 16 students in FSM |newspaper=Pacific Daily News |date=August 7, 2009 |url=http://www.guampdn.com/article/20090807/NEWS01/908070314/1002 }}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

The donor-financed tuition payments awarded by Habele are a form of private vouchers. Unlike public school vouchers, private vouchers are not funded by the government. The use of private vouchers for low-income students has been described as a tool for facilitating education reform without becoming immersed in politics.{{cite book |editor1-last=Moe |editor1-first=Terry M. |title=Private Vouchers |date=1995 |publisher=Hoover Institution Press |location=Stanford, CA |isbn=978-0817993726 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/privatevouchers00moet/page/7 7–9] |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/privatevouchers00moet/page/7 }}

Several of the annual tuition scholarships are named for individual Americans whose life or work Habele cites as having "embodied the best of the longstanding U.S.-Micronesian partnership.".{{cite web |author=Daily Post Staff |title=Habele awards scholarship to 22 students |url=https://www.postguam.com/news/local/habele-awards-scholarship-to-22-students/article_c481e25a-bce7-11ea-af41-a3ad4816a66f.html |website=Guam Daily Post |date=4 July 2020 |publisher=Ho S. Eun Trust |access-date=28 June 2021}} These include a United States Navy Doctor, a former official with the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and a former Peace Corps Volunteer who drowned while rescuing a child in Chuuk.

Early in 2010, Habele announced plans to develop and distribute native language materials for educators and students in the outer islands of Yap State, Micronesia. The initial project was a Ulithian to English dictionary.{{cite web |title=Former Micronesia Peace Corps Group Funds Scholarships |publisher=Pacific Islands Development Program/East-West Center |date=January 28, 2010 |url=http://pidp.eastwestcenter.org/pireport/2010/January/01-28-22.htm}} This was the first rigorous documentation of the Ulithian language and copies were provided to educators and students throughout Ulithi and Fais.{{cite web |title=Charity Publishes Dictionary For Remote Micronesian Islanders |publisher=College of Micronesia-FSM |date=May 10, 2010 |url=http://www.comfsm.fm/news/releases/habele4.html}} The authors' stated aim was to create a consistent and intuitive pattern of Roman alphabet spelling useful for native Ulithian and native English speakers.{{cite web |title=Ulithi Dictionary to Help FSM Students Learn English |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Company |date=May 15, 2010 |url=http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/pacbeat/stories/201005/s2899190.htm}}

Donations to schools generally consist of books, school supplies, and classroom instructional materials.{{cite web |title=Pacific Islands Networking |publisher=Pacific Initiative, University of Hawaii |access-date=April 25, 2007 |url=http://www2.ctahr.hawaii.edu/adap2/Pacific_Initiative/index.htm}} Habele has played a major role in the creation of libraries on the isolated atolls of Ulithi and Eauripik.{{cite news |url=http://www.saipantribune.com/newsstory.aspx?newsID=77350&cat=1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717083345/http://www.saipantribune.com/newsstory.aspx?newsID=77350&cat=1 |newspaper=Saipan Tribune |archive-date=July 17, 2011 |accessdate=December 26, 2015 |title=School books, supplies donated to remote Pacific Island}} English language dictionaries have also been provided to students, including a 1,000 dictionary donation in the Fall of 2012 intended to equip every middle school student throughout Yap State with a personal dictionary for home and classroom use.{{cite web |title=Habele Outer Island Education Fund Donates 1,000 English Dictionaries to Yap |publisher=ABC 7 Guam |date=August 8, 2012 |url=http://www.pacificnewscenter.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=26168:habele-outer-island-education-fund-donates-1000-english-dictionaries-to-yap&catid=45:guam-news&Itemid=156}}

In 2020 Habele introduced direct book donations, providing books on a monthly basis to children from birth to the age of five in the State of Yap.{{cite web |last1=Admin |first1=W |title=Young readers program piloted in Yap: 1 book per month for 5 years |url=https://www.pacificislandtimes.com/post/2020/10/07/young-readers-program-piloted-in-yap-1-book-per-month-for-5-years |website=Pacific Island Times |date=7 October 2020 |publisher=Pacific Independent News Service LLC |access-date=28 June 2021}} The program, known locally as "Young Island Readers," has been described by a high school principal on Yap as "a powerful tool for increasing literacy among children here on Yap."{{cite news |last1=Jaynes |first1=Bill |title=A book a month for children in Yap |url=http://www.kpress.info/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1622:a-book-a-month-for-children-in-yap&catid=8&Itemid=103 |access-date=28 June 2021 |issue=(20) 18 |publisher=Kaselehlie Press |date=6 August 2020}}

Habele also supports programs that engage students outside the traditional classroom. These include financial and material support for the creation of traditional dugout canoes by high school aged boys.{{cite news |title=Traditional canoes sail forward in Micronesia |newspaper=Saipan Tribune |date=March 15, 2012 |url=http://www.saipantribune.com/index.php/traditional-canoes-sail-forward-in-micronesia/ |access-date=December 26, 2015}} as well as creation of after school clubs for robotics competitions between high schools{{cite magazine |last1=Corcoran |first1=Michael P. |title=Grassroots Robotics |magazine=Robot Magazine |date=May–June 2012 |issue=34 |pages=70–72 |url=http://www.ychs.net/documents/robot%20article.pdf}} In May 2012, Oceania's first ever Vex Robot competition was held in the State of Yap. Teams representing Yap Catholic High School and the Yap Seventh-Day Adventist School completed a public competition and demonstrated using robotics kits donated by Habele.{{cite news |title='Yap Robo Day' features robotics competition in Micronesia |newspaper=Saipan Tribune |date=May 16, 2012 |url=http://www.saipantribune.com/index.php/yap-robo-day-features-robotics-competition-in-micronesia/ |access-date=December 26, 2015}} By 2017, the league had grown to the point where a team from Yap represented all of Micronesia at the FIRST Global international robotics competition in Washington, D.C.{{cite web |title=WEBBER: HELP YAP GO TO ROBOTICS COMPETITION |publisher=First Global via Guam Pacific Daily News |date=April 19, 2017 |url=http://first.global/in-the-news/webber-help-yap-go-to-robotics-competition/}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{official website|http://www.habele.org/}}
• [http://www.habele.blogspot.com Habele blog]

Category:Organizations based in the Federated States of Micronesia

Category:Non-profit organizations based in South Carolina

Category:Yap

Category:Chuuk State

Category:Education in the Federated States of Micronesia