International Educational Services

International Educational Services(IES) is committed to serving the needs of long-suffering villagers in rural Ghana, West Africa. Our primary focus is on children and women, the most vulnerable and neglected members of the remote communities with whom  we form long-term partnerships. YOUR help is greatly needed, as IES is a small non-profit organization dependent on the generosity of donors to help village children prepare for the challenges they will face in future Ghana.  Me da se!  Thank you!

International Educational Services (IES) is a registered non-profit organization exempt from Federal income tax under section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Degedege Village, at the site of our current IES project: the on-going construction of a 10 room primary and kindergarten school.  Bravo, folks!

This is the primary school block which, despite its dilapidated condition, is still currently in use for 3rd through 6th grades.  IES would like to see our school construction project completed as soon as possible so that the children of Degedege Village will have the school that they deserve.  Can YOU help us?

First and second grade students in Degedege went from learning under the trees for years to shelter in an unfurnished junior high school block in 2009, shortly after the arrival of IES. Read on...

The first task IES undertook in Degedege Village was the installation of 50 new desks (each seats 4 students)  to accommodate primary students.  A short time after, a small number of additional desks were added by the District Education Office. We also donated colorful books for both primary and junior high students, and also teaching and learning materials, as well as sports equipment.

Two large storage cabinets were also donated by IES to provide space for the new supplies and teaching materials. We will need more, soon!

A lone worker adding wooden frames to the new school's windows. The I.E.S. Degedege School Construction Project has moved along over the past months since we began in 2010. It will include two kindergarten classrooms, six primary classrooms, headmistress office/storage, and staff office. At this point, our projected date of completion is February 2012. Great job, everyone!

Natalie and Kelvin present teaching and learning donations to Degedege Village primary and junior secondary schools in July 2011. These new items were donated by US Africa Children's Fellowship and IES.

  International Educational Services (IES)

Please Contact Us To Contribute To The School Construction Project!

**We accept money orders and credit card prepaid checks. 

The chalkboard in one of the unsuitable classrooms still in use at the current primary school in Degedege village, Ghana.

Village School Construction Committee meets with IES to discuss progress of project.A significant component of our work in rural communities is the voluntary participation of villagers in most aspects of the projects, especially the initial stage of laying the foundation.  

All IES projects must have an on-site coordinator who is known and respected by the community.  Sylvester Addo Fosu (right), a teacher in nearby Yabraso Village, has served as a Coordinator for  I.E.S. since 2007.  Here, he is meeting with some Degedege residents who have taken on the role of leaders in a village currently without a leader: The former chief was dethroned in 2009 (after IES visited for the first time) and, subsequently, ousted from the village.

Sylvester and engineer from the District Planning Office in Nsawkaw discuss the next phase of our construction project in 2010. The new school block will contain six primary classrooms, two kindergarten classrooms, a headteacher's office and storeroom, plus a staff office. The projected cost of the new   schoolblock is $38,000.

There are always children with us, enjoying a brief respite from their lives of subsistence farming and relative isolation: Degedege Village is accessible by "shared taxi", which is very slow and irregular, depending on a sufficient number  of passengers    We will do our best to see to it that the futures of these children hold more promise than they could ever have even imagined. 

Natalie teaches Scrabble to teachers in Degedege Village as an enjoyable, easy way to increase their English language skills.  This is a particularly weak component of rural schooling.  Our next step is to demonstrate how teachers can incorporate reading materials donated by IES into the daily classsroom experience. We will create  new after-school workshops which  encourage teachers, not criticize them.  Attendance, as always, will be on a voluntary basis.

Please Contribute To The IES School Construction  Project in Degedege. We Need Your Help!

School children in Degedege ready to take charge of their new school, albeit a bit early.

Please Help IES To Put The Final Touches On Our New School. Donate!  Thank You!