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ANNUAL REPORT ( October 27, 2008 through October 25, 2009 ) Reported below is a summary of the activities of Pennsylvania Partnerships Abroad, Ltd. ( PPA ) for the above period of time. This report was submitted at the annual meeting of the PPA Board of Directors and the Advisory Board, held in Linglestown, PA on October 25, 2009, at the PPA headquarters office. INTERNSHIP PROGRAM - The 23rd group of Polish Masters Degree business students, studying at the national University of Economics, in Wroc³aw, has arrived in Penn-sylvania. One of the eight students who now comprise the current 23rd group of Interns arrived here on July 6th and the remaining seven arrived on September 25, 2009. The earlier-arriving Intern will complete her internship on October 30th, and the remaining seven Interns will complete their four months ( 17 weeks ) of training on January 22, 2010. These internships, which involve a working and studying experience at no cost to the students, are now being conducted with these south-central Pennsylvania business and organization sponsors : Group # 23 sponsors :
Since the Internship Program began in 1990, 238 Polish students have now participated in this unique activity. These Interns continue to become the business leaders of the new Poland. MATERIALS SENT TO POLAND - Cases of educational and fire service materials continue to be collected and processed here, and then shipped to 96 locations in Poland, and also one location in Ukraine. During the period of this report, five shipments, totaling 106 cases of materials, were shipped. The cost of shipping these cases was $ 3,456.32. Since the legal incorporation of PPA in 1992, a grand total of 73 shipments, totaling 1,643 cases of materials, weighing 62,797 pounds, have been sent to Poland and Ukraine, at a cost of $ 47,743.02. Currently, materials are being collected and sent to 97 schools, colleges, universities, and city libraries; and 13 fire organizations. To the educational Institutions, 140 different magazine titles are being gathered here and sent, as donated by many persons and organizations in central Pennsylvania, together with other materials, such as flags of four “English”-speaking countries, “English” grammar textbooks, maps, library books, dictionaries, and sets of encyclopedias. In 1996, a “sponsor” program was created to attract contributors of donations, each donation in amounts of $ 25.00 ( or multiples ), to assist in paying the shipping cost of cases of materials being sent to Poland. To date, 127 persons and organizations have given 1,257 donations of $ 25.00 ( or multiples ), totaling at least $ 31,425 toward the overall shipping costs listed above. COMPUTER PRINTER “PURCHASE”
- In August, 2009, the computer printer used for PPA activities suddenly experienced major operational difficulties, which required replacement of the unit. A new H P printer was obtained at COSTCO, but at no cost, due to the store’s lifetime guarantee and exchange policy, which replaced the former printer.
INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL CONTACTS
- Because of the very positive change in the Polish administrative personnel at my Polish university which began in 2006, I have been able to develop interactive educational contacts within the past four years between the Wroc³aw University of Economics, and these American institutions : Juniata College, Shippensburg Uni-versity, and Penn State University, in Pennsylvania; Washington College, in Maryland; and Mount Union College, in Ohio. Interactive educational activities under development involve live tele-conferencing, curriculum development, summer class trips to Poland, student and professor exchanges, and student-empowerment activities connected to student government, book store creation, alumni affairs, and foundation development for fund-raising.
TEACHER RECRUITMENT For the 2009-10 academic year ( the 18th year of this program ), one person ( Shawn Rumery ) was recruited by PPA for and sent to an educational institution in Poland to work as an “English” language native speaker teacher. Since the T.O.P.P.S. ( “Teaching Opportunities from Pennsylvania in Polish Schools” ) Program’s inception in 1992, a total of 46 teachers from the USA and Canada have been recruited to fill 63 teaching positions in 20 educational institutions within Poland’s secondary high school and university systems. This program continues to operate with the assistance of many Pennsylvania college and university placement offices. The “TOPPS Program” is also advertised on the world-wide Internet on PPA’s website, at this address - www.ppa-ltd.org . “POLAND” PROGRAMS - During the period of this report, 6 slide, display, and discussion programs, on topics dealing with Poland, were presented to central Pennsylvania groups and organizations. The Polish Intern students are involved with these programs, and monetary and material contributions for PPA expenses and programs are always requested from the groups. These contributions are one of the sources of PPA income, almost all of which are used for shipment costs of educational materials sent to Poland. In addition to the requesting of monetary and material contributions, requests are made for educational material donations, and business sponsors and housing hosts are solicited for future Internship Program students. To date, 256 “Poland” programs have been presented since 1987. FINANCING - As reported each year in the past, financial concerns continue to be a major challenge for this organization, and are its largest inhibitor of further progress. Funding also continues to be provided from my private funds, together with the con- tributions arising from various PPA activities. The recent increase in the minimum wage has helped to ease this financial con-dition, and is now permitting the partial refunding of personally-loaned funds. During the period of this report, funds were spent, with receipts on file, in the listed categories shown below : 1. Postage ……………………………………………… $ 670.89 2. Phone and internet ………..……………………….. $ 1,381.23 3. PPA travel expenses ………………………………. $ 3,044.04 4. Student Internship Program ………………………. $ 21,908.25 6. Materials shipments to Polish / Ukrainian schools $ 3,436.32 7. Office supplies and equipment …………………… $ 799.86 8. PPA organization items …………………………… $ 1,420.47 9. Film and photo developing ……………………….. $ 41.00 10. PPA organization program items ………………… $ 3,479.42 $36,181.48
On January 22, 2010, I again eagerly and excitedly return to Poland for the 34th time, to teach during the second semester for the 20th time in Wrocław Wroc³aw at the University of Economics. My plans call for the continuation of these activities for a minimum of an additional 9 years. I am very grateful for the continuing support of the members of the Board of Directors, of the Advisory Board, and from individuals and organizations in the central Pennsylvania community for their willingness to remain a part of all of this !!
William E. Minsker President |
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Last Update: December 13, 2009 |
