Oak View Middle School

Dear families of 8^th grade Social Studies students,

  In 8^th grade Geography we are starting a unit on Africa.  One of the district standards deals with micro entrepreneurship.  We are excited to offer the students an opportunity to help others while learning about micro loans, finances, entrepreneurship, and other cultures, while making real changes in the lives of people working to bring themselves out of poverty.  We can witness how our loans change the lives of people we choose to help both in school and at home online.  The microloan concept was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for making a lasting impact on poverty around the world.  The peace prize was awarded to Prof. Muhammad Yunus & Grameen Bank.  We have decided to work with Kiva. "Kiva is the world's first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend to unique entrepreneurs around the globe" (www.kiva.org/about) and was featured this year on Oprah on her Favorite Things episode. This will give students the chance to choose who we loan the money to.

  We will spend this unit raising money to lend to individuals through Kiva. Students will be able to go online to research individuals and groups that are starting small businesses in developing nations.  In our geography classes, we will use investment and economic principles to decide who we will loan to, and follow the businesses we invest in throughout the year.  We will start the loan process with Africa, but as this project grows we will happily loan to the regions that we cover through the rest of the year and beyond… As these loans are paid back, future students (who will raise money as well) will be able to reinvest the money your children raise into new small businesses around the world.  They will be not only changing the lives of their chosen entrepreneurs, but through the years their money will be reinvested over and over again.

  UPDATE:  This is the 2^nd year of our legacy project.  Last years students raised over $3000, with an over 99% repayment rate, this money has turned into $10,000 and over 400 loans.  Each month we receive back about $800 in re-payments, which is re-loaned to about 32 new entrepreneurs. 

  The majority of the fundraising will be done through students bringing in money.  For each $25 students bring in a loan will be made.  Unfortunately, although you are able to send in checks, they must be made out to the teacher, as all funds must go through our PayPal accounts.  Additional fundraising for this project will be done through student designed bracelets and t-shirts that will be sold.  Bracelets will be $3, t-shirts will be designed next week and the cost will be forthcoming (last years was about $10).  Each of the geography teachers has also personally pledged up to $125 incentive to their classes.  We are also encouraging students to set a goal to beat last year's class.