Students develop projects to change lives

MHCC is home to 37 international students enrolled in the Scholarship for Education and Economic Development (SEED) program.

These students are on full scholarships for two years at MHCC, paid by the U.S. Agency for International Development. During this time the students develop Community Action Plans to isolate issues in their native, developing countries and to figure solutions.

Nine MHCC SEED students traveled to Arizona State University during spring break to participate in the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGI) conference and Commitments Challenge, founded in 2005 to promote innovative solutions to global problems.

MHCC students Raquel Granados and Ariel Rodriguez have secured funding through CGI to make their projects a reality. Eleven MHCC students submitted projects to CGI this school year.

Granados will develop 22 composting toilets in her home community, La Teja Santa Ana La Paz, in Honduras, starting upon her return there in June.

“The objective is going to be to build a composting toilet and then I will improve health,” she said. “The problem is the lack of sanitation.”

Nikki Gillius, SEED coordinator for MHCC, said Granados “comes from a very rural community in Honduras. There are not plumbing or sanitation systems and therefore sewage is essentially going into the rivers.”

Rodriguez found a different issue in his community, Agua Caliente, Paravana Chloluteca, also in Honduras: persistent heat.

His project involves planting 3,400 mango trees to cool his community.

“This project is focused on reforestation, yes, but also it will improve people’s health in my community,” he said. “Many people suffer from hypertension, including my mom.”

He explained how hypertension is affected by environmental factors, including heat. The  project also will help improve water quality and help shade the water and keep it from evaporating as quickly.

Rodriguez raised $1,600 in funding for his project through CGI’s online vote-by-donation system where he made it to the top 16 national finalists. His anticipated cost for the project is $1,100, and so he is thrilled and simply plans to enlarge its scope, he said.

“I am very excited to go home. My community is very proud for me to be in this program and (to) have accomplished all this stuff,” he said. “Also, I am happy to go back to my country with ideas about environmental issues and also with a grant to make possible my project and really implement this idea — environmental protection.”

Granados, too, has won strong support from local residents. “They are very proud of me and very excited, because where I live is just my family,” she said. “There are 20 houses, but just my family… this is going to be the first project we are going to develop in my community.”

The orchestrating of a project takes time. Students begin developing their projects from the start of their two-year program. They also learn how to write grants. However, fluent English is not required to be selected for the SEED program. Ninety-five percent of MHCC SEED students do not know any English when the program begins, said Gillius.

Students are asked to apply by SEED coordinators in their various countries. The selection process takes about a year and only 2 to 3 percent of applicants are chosen, said Gillius. She said most students are from rural communities and indigenous populations.

“It’s a pretty hard process,” Gillius said.

“We are people that don’t know anything about English and we just start to write a grant 13 or 12 months after we get here,” said Rodriquez.

Students have to focus on finding and using resources in their own communities while being a great distance away from them. “This is a really huge responsibility, to represent your community and be away from your family, but it’s worth it,” said Rodriguez.

Granados has far exceeded her expectations. “I never thought to come here to the United States to study,” she said of her SEED application process. “It was like, ‘Okay, I’m going to go and I don’t know what’s going to happen,’ ” she said.

Rodriguez said the experience has been special. “Sometimes it’s like you don’t believe it because this is an amazing opportunity. This kind of opportunity doesn’t happen very often… The SEED program is really focused on getting young men and ladies from rural communities and (to) change their life and the life of their communities.”

Apart from focusing on their projects, Granados said the two Mt. Hood students “learned a little bit of everything, not just in natural resources area, but also in leadership.

“Now I feel like I’m ready for… any job. I can do it,” she said. “You may not know how to do the job, but with the skills you have learned, you can learn how to do it very quickly.”

The value of knowing English is undeniable for these students. “I really consider English as a language of unity,” Rodriguez said. “There are many organizations wanting to help our communities and sometimes it’s very bizarre to find somebody who speaks English to make the connection between this community and this organization. So, that’s just the greatest gift to have — to be able to connect our country.”

Said Granados, “Where I came from, there is just a little tiny school. I know in my community, I won’t speak English because no one will understand me. But you never know what kind of job you will get, so if you have it on your resumé that you speak English, that’s a huge impact.”

Both students urge MHCC students to develop projects of their own.

“It doesn’t matter if you do your project in your community or not… there are a lot of places that really need your help or someone who can speak up,” Granados said.

Although the pair values the knowledge and experiences they have gained in the United States, including leadership and money management skills, both Rodriquez and Granados said they intend to live permanently back in Honduras.

“I know we don’t have Internet there or any of the technology (available at MHCC), but… I still love my community and I would never trade” it,” Granados said.

Gillius said one of the great things about the SEED program is how the enrolled students are committed to their home countries.

“It’s good to know there’s educated, positive young people in their communities,” she said.