Crossroads

MAR

21

Teachers Paid to Teach “CrossRoads” in Ukraine

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Because of the perseverance of youth and medical workers in Ukraine, the Ministry of Education (MOE) has approved the CrossRoads Life at the CrossRoads curriculum as an official elective for Ukrainian secondary schools. Teachers will therefore be paid to teach CrossRoads in the classroom.

This represents a tremendous leap forward in expanding the use of the CrossRoads strategy in Ukraine. The 30-lesson program teaches students strong character and how to make life-affirming choices, thus avoiding personal, and eventually societal, consequences like HIV/AIDS, drug and alcohol addiction, teen pregnancy, and suicide.

The MOE approved the Life at the CrossRoads curriculum for use in public schools in Ukraine in 2003. However, it was not included on the list of electives that teachers would be paid to teach. Since, in the Ukrainian school system, secondary school teachers are paid for each course they teach, only a small percentage of CrossRoads-trained teachers have had the opportunity to teach the program. However, the recent decision by the MOE gives the curriculum “facultative” status, meaning teachers will now be compensated for teaching it.

“As far as we know, this decision by the Ministry of Education of Ukraine to give us facultative approval is unprecedented,” says Rich Leary, CrossRoads Coordinator for Ukraine. “Because it is such an excellent curriculum and because now teachers will be paid to teach it, we anticipate a huge increase in demand for CrossRoads training conferences in Ukraine.”

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FEB

19

A Heart of Gold: Samantha Askey 1989-2007

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Samantha Askey was, as her best friend Sarah Vermilyea described her, a “girly-girl.” The bouncy redhead loved to shop; one of her favorite mall stores was Claire’s, a costume jewelry boutique. That was where Samantha and Sarah, inseparable since the day they met in a Kindergarten class at church, bought a “best friends” heart necklace – the kind that comes as one piece and splits apart for both friends to wear.

Samantha was like many teenagers – she enjoyed spending time with friends, eating out and attending youth group. One of her favorite activities at church was called “Bible Drill,” where she would belt out memorized Scripture in eight seconds flat. She also loved to laugh, talk on the phone and cook.

But the 18-year-old was different from the average adolescent in the most essential of ways: Samantha lived with HIV. And on August 15, 2007, her battle finally ended when she died due to complications from the illness. Continue Reading »

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