The grant brings the total obligated by USAID for the "Orava Project" to $3,032,474. USAID (U.S. Agency for International Development) administers U.S. foreign assistance programs administering economic and humanitarian assistance in more than 80 countries.

The Orava Project, named for the region of Slovakia in which it commenced, is directed by Northern Iowa College of Education faculty members Kurt Meredith and Jeannie Steele, who have been living in Slovakia since 1994.

Czechoslovakia gained democracy in 1990, and in 1992 split amicably into the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic. Since the country, including its schools, had been state-run for so long - Slovaks under the age of 45 had never lived under democratic principles - the power to make choices and speak openly loomed large. U.S. contacts led Slovak education officials to UNI's doorstep.

The project originally was conceptualized as a seven- to 10-year effort in three phases, designed to democratize the Slovak basic school program, while also introducing democratic instructional practices into university teacher preparation programs there. Phase I, preparation and design, was completed in May 1993, after 14 months of collaboration between UNI and Slovak educators.

Phase II, initial implementation, was funded by the initial $1 million grant from USAID. It began in July 1994, and runs through 1996. Meredith, Steele and their colleagues have been working with educators in Orava, which includes 64 schools and 46 communities, and with Comenius University in the capital city of Bratislava. Fourteen faculty members from Comenius University and 35 U.S.-based educators are involved with project initiatives, and more than 350 teachers and administrators from the Orava region have had direct involvement.

"The project has been even more successful than anticipated," says Meredith, "with excellent collaboration among all partners. The Core Teacher Leader groups have been extremely effective in spreading their work to other parts of the Orava region. The partnerships developed between Comenius and UNI faculty and basic school teachers have been richer and more productive than expected so early in the project."

Phase III, project expansion and ancillary implementation, is being funded by the additional $2 million from USAID, and will run through 1999. In addition to Phase I partnerships, work will be expanded to include a major effort in Bratislava and in the Nitra region, as well as partnerships with Nitra Pedagogical University and the Economical University in Bratislava.

"This project has always been conceived of as a seven- to 10-year effort," says Steele. "To reach educators across Slovakia it is necessary to have time to do it properly and meaningfully. This next phase is critical to dissemination of the project throughout Slovakia.

"USAID people here in Slovakia have been extremely supportive of our project," adds Steele. "We have found them to be extraordinary partners in this effort. They have had great insight in working with us on the project and we believe the leadership of Patricia Lerner and Kathy Stermer to be extremely helpful in our efforts here."

Ronald Roskens, a UNI alumnus who served as USAID head during the Bush Administration, commented earlier this year, "This is the kind of project that justifies the distribution of U.S. funds for improving education in other countries. Professors Meredith and Steele were exceedingly well-prepared and their proposals were sensible."

In addition to impacting current classrooms and tomorrow's teachers, the project also aims to help the Slovaks chart new ground in educational leadership and administration, and in school/community partnerships. Although the country's literacy rate is 95 percent, concepts such as parental involvement, teacher initiative and school mascots were virtually unheard of, and even student/teacher interaction had been dramatically stifled.

Steele, Meredith and their colleagues have conducted a host of workshops. Evaluations by attendees provide insight into the kinds of change possible via the Orava project:

"Under their (American lecturers) guidance, I started to understand that if we want to make teaching more human and democratic we have to start changing ourselves. We have to acquire assertive communication, believe in our own strengths and capacities..."

"I am not sure I would have stayed unchanged if I had not started this program. Where should I get the huge knowledge and ideas which have not been affected by communist ideology, by Soviet education and by communist party courses. We had plenty of them in the past. I grew up in a family where all members prayed that communism would vanish. We believed this time would come..."

"I like that instructors, Kurt and Jeannie, do not manifest their supremacy, they are inclined to accept different ideas, and they understand that we live in a different world."

Similarly, UNI educators have found the Slovakia experience to be an eye-opening one. Survey comments from American participants include:

"I have found myself more reflective on issues of democracy and education and reading related articles that I may have previously overlooked. There have been opportunities to share information about the project in classes and it has enabled me to work with more staff across departments."

"It has certainly opened possibilities for research which we hope to pursue. The way I look at the preparation of school leaders has been impacted. Course content is becoming more skill oriented with application through simulations, case studies, vignettes, etc."

"I have integrated many ideas and observations from the Orava experience into my teaching. These programs should help build cultural awareness and be an impetus for reflection on our teaching practices as they relate to our culture. "Do we practice what we preach?" They should help re-inspire and develop more global thinking. It also is good public relations for the University and community letting others know that some innovative things do happen in northeast Iowa."