Internet Access and Training Program (IATP)

TAG participants and volunteers discuss
borders of the future reserve with Head
of the village.

In July, four schoolgirls from Shtormove village (Luhansk region, Ukraine) – participants in the Tech Age Girls (TAG) project – and their teacher concluded their community project entitled, “Ukrainian Orchid,” which is dedicated to establishing an orchid reserve in their village.

To implement their community project the TAG participants researched the orchid fields in their village, and organized an outreach campaign and series of events dedicated to environmental protection in the region and unique plants in their village. They then applied to the village and district administration and prepared all necessary documents to create the nature reserve. The official opening of the orchid reserve is to take place in September. Over 80 schoolchildren and local residents were involved in implementation of the project. Village resident Oleksandr Korobka remarked, “You are doing very important work. I think this reserve will facilitate environment protection in our village.”

TAG is an IREX project designed to equip Ukrainian girls from disadvantaged families and rural areas with technology skills to help them secure a brighter future. Since the beginning of October, 58 schoolgirls from six regions of Ukraine have attended IATP Step-by-Step training series. They mastered basic computer skills, learned to use e-mail, and learned to find information about jobs and educational opportunities on the Internet. The girls also have discovered how to create interactive presentations, have gained skills in fundraising, and have learned to write their own resumes. Finally, they learned the basics of Web design, including HTML, website structure, and visual website editors, and how to post resources onto a server. Twenty-eight new websites have been posted to the IATP server by TAG participants so far. By using their newly acquired skills, the girls developed community service projects; the authors of five winning projects were invited to attend the IATP Winter School of Leadership. Fourteen schoolgirls and five of their teachers attended the IATP Winter School of Leadership in Kyiv, Ukraine, from January 15 to 19.

Sofia Zhadan, project leader, poses near
the sign at the border of the reserve .

During the Winter School the participants learned about community project development and volunteerism, discovered the basics of fundraising, gained leadership skills, and found out how to write a resume and find a job and study opportunities by using the Internet. Within the framework of the Winter School, the attendees met with Michelle Logsdon, Counselor for Public Affairs of the US Embassy in Ukraine. Ms. Logsdon discussed opportunities for cooperation between American and Ukrainian youth, shared her experience on how to achieve success, and answered questions about relations and attitudes between the US and Ukraine. TAG participants also met with Natalia Makovska, director of the Central State Archives of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine, and Kateryna Kryvoruchko, senior staff scientist of the Central State Archives of Supreme Bodies of Power and Government of Ukraine, Saint Barbara knight, who discussed the role of women in Ukrainian society, including the life story of famous Ukrainian poetess Olena Teliga.

The TAG project, sponsored by IATP, is working to inspire girls to serve their communities, and create new opportunities for themselves and their classmates.