Mwebaza/Niwot Connection Continues  January 2012
BY KIM GLASSCOCK
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It was a celebration of a cross-cultural partnership at Niwot Elementary School when students had the chance in December to spend time with the visiting headmistress of Mwebaza Infant Primary School in Kyengera, Uganda.

Mwebaza School headmistress Catherine Namatovu arrived in Colorado on Dec. 5 for a long-anticipated visit to Niwot Elementary, which has partnered with the Mwebaza School for five years. She took part in a special all-day cross-cultural celebration at the school on Dec. 15.

There were African arts and games in the morning. Students in all grades performed American folk songs and dances, and in return, Nomatovu taught African dances and modeled traditional African dress. Lunch included typical American food – pizza – while the Ugandan staple matooke (steamed bananas) was served in classrooms.

The Niwot Elementary-Mwebaza School partnership began when second grade teacher Dale Peterson contacted People to People International in search of pen-pals for his class.

“At first we just exchanged letters and photos, and learned about each other’s school days,” Peterson said. “But as we began building community and our students became aware of the poverty there, they decided they wanted to do more than just be pen-pals.”

Photo by Kim Glasscock
Mwebaza Infant Primary School headmistress Catherine Namatovu and Niwot Elementary School fourth grade student Sophia Chivers demonstrate a traditional Ugandan dance at a school assembly as part of the Dec. 15 celebration of the five-year cross-cultural partnership between the two schools.

To handle fundraising done by his students, Peterson created the non-profit Mwebaza Foundation, and the Niwot Elementary students got down to work. They held jog-a-thons, coin drives, coffee sales and used children’s book sales to raise money for the Mwebaza School.

They also raised visibility in the community by marching in the Niwot Nostalgia Day Parade and collected more donations by running children’s games at the Nostalgia Day festival.

Over the years, Niwot Elementary students and their families have sent boxes of books and school supplies to the Mwebaza School. The tireless fundraising helped raise enough money to construct a new classroom building to alleviate overcrowding.

Last year, through a partnership with the Heaven’s Hope Foundation of Boulder, Niwot Elementary students helped the Mwebaza School put into place a sustainable program to grow vegetables in high yield “pocket gardens” and raise chickens for their eggs for the school’s lunch program.

The Niwot students also helped fund a rainwater gathering system that gives the school on-site, clean and drinkable water.
As word of the Niwot Elementary-Mwebaza School partnership circulated, two additional elementary schools partnered with African schools under the umbrella of the Mwebaza Foundation. Eagle Crest Elementary has paired with Mapampi Primary School in Silembe, Zambia, and Coyote Ridge Elementary in Broomfield has partnered with St. Paul Infant Primary School in Nkokonjeru, Uganda.

“This cross-cultural partnership helps to broaden the minds of the students,” Peterson said. “Every year our students are very excited to make new friends who live halfway around the world, and to learn about their lives. They also learn that there are things we can do to make a difference. I hope it inspires a passion for helping others.”

Donations to support all three schools can be made on the Mwebaza Foundation website at www.mwebaza.org.