ACADEMIC SPOTLIGHT

Education Africa!

Monthly Upper School Assemblies are relatively new to MCS, and the December exchange with four 12-year-old students from Masimbambane “College” was spectacular. Sponsored by Education Africa!, the MCS assembly was part of a tour whose purposes are both educational exchange and fundraising. Drums and recorders, woven together with songs and dances, was followed by a Q&A:

• “How long have you been playing? – 2 years.”
• “What language were the songs in, what was the sound that we don’t have in English? – Xhosa, Zulu.”
• “How many languages do you speak at home? – 5,4,4,3.”

When the two girls broke out into conversation, the Education Africa sponsor asked in jest, “Can anyone tell us what they were saying?” From the corner of the Music Room, Renee Reynolds (’95, currently an MCS trustee) spoke up, “I can!” Renee was a Fulbright Scholar for 1 year in South Africa after graduating from Yale. The 1st surprise was that indeed she could. The 2nd surprise was that someone in the room had once, like themselves, walked the fire escape, studied Spanish, and gone on farm trips! Education Africa! fundraising envelopes are available in the living room and development office.

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