Professor, Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning (UEPP), Virginia Tech; Joann Boughman Innovation Fellow at USG; Acting Director, Center for Future of Work Places and Practices (CFWPP); Head of Outreach and Engagement, Center for European and Transatlantic Studies (CEUTS)
In the early morning hours of Friday, December 18, 2015, the Mzuzu University library in Northern Malawi was completely destroyed by fire. The Mzuni library contained the textbooks and other study materials used by students. It was the main place on campus for students to study, read, and use computers. It housed the University’s network servers. All of these resources were destroyed by the fire. The University is moving forward to establish an interim library for the current semester, to plan for a permanent replacement, and to seek funding for these tasks. It needs our help.
What books are needed? Books urgently needed for students to use for their coursework are listed here. The University is seeking immediately to replace more than…
Thanks to everyone who attended my CHEP 2016 practice session yesterday on Providing Video Feedback on Assignments. After my presentation I spoke with several people who were interested in creating a private community where educators could discuss issues related to providing video feedback. This community would be a place to discuss platform/software/technical issues and to discuss ways to maximize the value of the video feedback provided to students. Thus, I have decided to keep the “Video Feedback” community I created for the practice session and will enroll educators into this community upon request. Please send me an email if you would like to join the conversation (make sure you send this email from the account you have linked to a Google+ profile).
The Video Feedback community can be accessed by selecting the image below. If you are not yet a member and would like to join, you can ask to join the community while viewing the community information. I recommend you list your academic affiliation on your Google+ profile so I know your interest in the community is genuine.
During the session I will discuss how to [1] create a video-feedback platform using SnagIt, Google+, Google Circles, and YouTube, [2] structure the process of providing video feedback, and [3] what to include in the feedback video. I plan to share what I have learned from experimenting with Google Apps and screen capture software, and from recording over 300 assignment feedback videos.
Click on the image below to access the first Google Doc that will be used during the practice session. This document provides instructions on what participants will need to do to be able to engage in the session.
On Tuesday, February 2, 2016, Eric Vance and I will take part in the MCC’s Open Data: Big Impact event in Washington, D.C. We will join a panel discussion entitled “(Some of) the Data’s Out There, Now What?” The panel discussion will be hosted by Beth Tritter (Vice President, Policy and Evaluation, MCC). Eric and I will be joined on the panel by Jacqueline Homann (Masters Graduate, Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, University of Texas) and Jennifer Sturdy (Director, Berkeley Initiative for Transparency in the Social Sciences).
The presentation below contains an outline of our discussion notes. It also includes some information about the sample frame we developed for our impact evaluation of the MCC-funded Rural Water Supply Program in Nampula, Mozambique, and links to presentations (i.e., a seminar and webinar) of the evaluation results and the final report.
If you are interested in attending the Experience WASH in Malawi study abroad course, I will be holding two information sessions about the course at the following times:
Wednesday, Jan 27, 4:30pm, Room 107, Architecture Annex
Friday, Feb 5, 12pm, Room 111, Architecture Annex
If you are not located at the Blacksburg campus, a WebEx connection to each session can be provided upon request.
Following the completion of the course, interested students will have an opportunity to undertake an internship with different development organizations in Malawi. These organizations include Ngurwu (a community-based organization that provides education and development assistance in many different areas), World Vision, Merion Medical Mission (an organization that installs shallow wells), and the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian (CCAP) (an organization that could offer internships in health, education, and development). We will work with students to help ensure a good fit between their interests and the needs of the organizations.
Abstract: In 2015, African ministers established the Ngor Declaration to achieve universal access to adequate sanitation and hygiene services and eliminate open defecation by 2030. Realizing this target will require significant public and private investment. Over the last two decades, there has been increasing recognition that sanitation programs should be demand driven, yet limited information exists about how much rural residents in developing countries are willing to pay for sanitation improvements. This paper applies the contingent valuation approach to evaluate how much households in rural Senegal are willing to pay for a ventilated improved pit (VIP) latrine. The analysis uses data from 1,635 household surveys that were conducted in 47 rural communities across four regions in Senegal. The willingness to pay model found that respondents were more willing to pay for a VIP latrine if they had plans to improve their existing latrine, lived in districts located nearer to the capital city of Dakar, were dissatisfied with their existing sanitation service, and were male. The analysis also indicates that the current household contribution of 5% of the costs of constructing a VIP latrine could be increased to 30% with only a modest decline in the number of households willing to pay this amount.
Following the devastating library fire at Mzuzu University, several people and organizations have contacted me in relation to how they can help support the effort of rebuilding the university’s library. In the past week, I was forwarded an email from Hayden Boyd, the President of the Malawi Education and Children’s Welfare Foundation, that I outlines the donation process that Mzuzu University would like groups in the U.S. to follow. I have provided a copy of this email below for your reference.
Source: Dr. Mavuto Tembo
Hello to all,
Following the devastating fire that destroyed Mzuzu University’s library, many on this list have expressed concern and willingness to help. I was privileged to serve as a research professor and director of research at the University 2002-2005, and since returning to the USA I have noted its impressive growth in size, scope, and academic quality during regular visits. The loss of the University library is a terrible setback to this progress.
Vice Chancellor Robert Ridley has written me that, despite this loss, the University intends to keep to its academic calendar and open in January for distance learning students and in March for returning face-to-face students. They are working out an interim approach over the next 12 to 24 months, as they seek to get a new library built, plus a strategy to get funds for a new library. Clearly, much needs to be done.
Dr. Ridley has asked the Malawi Education and Children’s Welfare Foundation to serve as an institutional base to promote the University’s cause, receive funds and help the University coordinate support from the USA. The Foundation is a 501(c)3 tax exempt foundation established for the support of Mzuzu University and other educational and children’s welfare institutions in Malawi. Our Board of Directors have all lived and worked in Malawi and I serve as the Foundation’s president.
On behalf of Mzuzu University, I invite you to help support the library’s rebuilding. Checks may be made to “Malawi Education and Children’s Welfare Foundation,” with “Mzuzu University library” in the memo field, and sent to:
Malawi Education and Children’s Welfare Foundation 507 Delburg Street Davidson, NC 28036
All contributions to the Foundation are tax deductible under US law.One hundred percent of all donations are used for the designated purpose in Malawi, with never a deduction for administrative or overhead expenses.
Many also have suggested donating books, computers, or other items. I believe it would be wise to hold off on in-kind donations until the University informs us of its needs and logistical challenges can be addressed.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely, Hayden Boyd
In a subsequent email from a colleague at Mzuzu University, I was informed that a Library Task Force committee has been created by the Vice Chancellor and University Librarian. This task force has asked each faculty member/department to develop a list of books that they would like to see included in a new library. The Library Task Force committee will liaise with the Malawi Education and Children’s Welfare Foundation as the point of contact in the U.S. I will post updates on this process as soon as I have them.
In the coming weeks, TEAM Malawi (a group of faculty and students at Virginia Tech and Radford University) will meet to discuss the actions we can take to help Mzuzu University recover from this loss. I will post information here on any activities that colleges, schools, departments, faculty, and/or students plan to undertake in the coming months.
You can help rebuild this vital resource. Virginia Tech and the Malawi Education and Children’s Welfare Foundation are collaborating to help Mzuni rebuild its library.
Ralph P Hall 