Arkansas Tech University has continued an ongoing international partnership by signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Ray of Hope Academy in Douala, Cameroon.
The MOU calls for ATU and Ray of Hope to “cooperate for the purpose of providing a mutual beneficial partnership to improve the learning outcomes of educational stakeholders.”
Under the points of agreement contained in the document, Arkansas Tech will seek to provide professional development for Ray of Hope faculty and staff while Ray of Hope will strive to develop opportunities for ATU College of Education students and faculty to observe its school operations, interview or survey Ray of Hope stakeholders and/or complete international field experiences.
In addition, the ATU College of Education and Ray of Hope have agreed to collaborate in the areas of lesson planning and other educational practices for the benefit of students and faculty at both entities. ATU and Ray of Hope will also work together to identify and seek potential grant funds supporting their collaborative efforts.
ATU and Ray of Hope will utilize distance technology to conduct interactions and achieve shared objectives.
Former Arkansas Tech student Ernest Ehabe founded Ray of Hope in his native Cameroon in 2016 after he and his wife recognized a need for special needs education when none was available in Douala for their child.
A large percentage of the almost 100 students enrolled at Ray of Hope have been diagnosed with Autism or Down’s Syndrome.
Over the past five years, students and faculty from the ATU College of Education have participated in projects that led to sharing lesson plans, activity ideas and donated supplies with the students and faculty at Ray of Hope.
Learn more about Ray of Hope at http://breadforlife.org/ray-of-hope-academy.
Learn more about the ATU College of Education at www.atu.edu/education.
