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Our Mission:

AAH is a volunteer, non-profit organization based in the United States that helps children in rural Uganda reach their full potential.  By creating model schools and clinics, we provide education and healthcare programs, local development opportunities, and community outreach to improve the quality of life and transform poor villages into self-sustaining communities.  We do this by engaging a caring community of volunteers, child sponsors, donors, partners and friends in the United States, Uganda and throughout the world. 

Our Vision: 

AAH's vision is to transform villages in rural Uganda into vibrant, self-sustaining communities through quality education and healthcare.  Specifically we seek to:

• Develop educational and healthcare models in each village where we have a presence.  Set new standards of academic excellence and prepare the children for adult lives that contribute to the progress of their communities and the world.  Local schools will perform better.  Students will progress to higher levels of learning and professional careers.  Through adult education programs, literacy will increase in local communities.
• Establish clinics and community health programs that provide children and their families with access to modern healthcare, medicines, and treatments.  More people will live longer with a higher quality of life.
• Encourage villages with AAH programs to employ technology and provide services for surrounding areas.  Building and farming techniques will demonstrate an increased environmental awareness.

Through shared learning experiences, AAH will foster greater cultural understanding on local, national, and international levels.

Our Core Values:

We are an organization that believes in ...

Education

• We believe that all children have a right to education and basic healthcare.
• We believe that education is the key to transformation and provides new opportunities.
• We believe that children are our hope for the future.

Integrity

• We responsibly and strategically use our resources of time, talent and money.

Respect

• We value the Ugandan culture and way of life.
• We are inclusive of diverse ideas, perspectives and backgrounds within AAH.

Communication

• We honestly and openly share our ideas and organizational decision making.

Partnership

• We foster teamwork and value relationships with our volunteers, child sponors, donors, partners and friends as we work to achieve our goals in partnership with the people of Uganda.

A Passion to Serve

• We empower people with opportunities to help children and others in need.
• We strengthen and grow the organization in a positive and constructive way.

John Wanda, Founder and President; Arlington, VA
Holly Hawthorne, Vice President; Arlington, VA
Susan Peters, Treasurer; Arlington, VA
Sarah Godlewski, Secretary; Arlington, VA
Cynthia Margeson, Member of Executive Committee; Arlington, VA
Jessica Arnett; Alexandria, VA
Jennifer Paul; Arlington, VA
Traci Radigan; Saratoga Springs, NY
Beatrice Tierney; Arlington, VA
Sue Walton; Arlington, VA
Joyce Wanda; Arlington, VA
Bobbi Wills; Gering, NE

AAH began as a scholarship program run by Ugandan immigrants John and Joyce Wanda. John and Joyce grew up in the villages of Bumwalukani and Bupoto in rural eastern Uganda near the town of Mbale. After winning a diversity lottery visa from the U.S. State Department, they came to the United States in June 1996 and quickly settled down in Arlington, VA. They were proud of their new country and impressed by the facilities and high standards of education in Arlington.

Witnessing the experiences of their children in public schools, John and Joyce wanted to provide a similar experience for the children in their rural villages in Uganda. They began by providing tuition support to five children in 1999. Within a few short years, their program had been embraced by Bethel United Church of Christ and the American Chiropractic Association, where John worked.  By 2002, about $10,400 was raised through this network, going directly to 142 students to help support their education. Unfortunately, the scholarship program did not have the immediate impact on the standards of education that John and Joyce wanted. A school is only as good as its infrastructure, and many schools in rural areas of Uganda (80% of the country) lack materials like paper, pencils, and books, and even walls. The teachers are not always trained and many do not speak English fluently, although it is the medium of instruction at schools as well as the country's national language. Attendance and tardiness issues are prevalent for both teachers and students. Many families decide that a child helping in the fields is much more beneficial than attending schools that face such barriers. While the students that were assisted by the scholarship program had better resources, they sat in crowded classrooms and received little assistance from their teachers or parents.

After considerable consultation with the community in Uganda and with the donors in the U.S., it was decided that the best and most effective way of making an impact on local education was to start a school in the village. With a little more funding added to the scholarship program, the stakeholders agreed that they could build a model primary school – one that could be an example for all the other schools in the village. On February 2, 2004, the doors of the Arlington Academy of Hope opened to 78 students and became the only school in the region that utilizes American models of education, serves lunch, and emphasizes the development of the child as an individual. Word spread quickly and soon more than 300 students were attending AAH with nearly 150 on a waiting list.