ANNE GAHONGAYIRE, SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE SUPREME COURT OF KIGALI, RWANDA, AND KEYNOTE SPEAKER FOR BC’S GLOBAL EDUCATION EMPHASIS WEEK.
Titled Global Education Emphasis Week, the annual event is part of the college’s overall Global Education Program, which includes study abroad. Open and free to students and the community, the 2016 version of Global Education Emphasis Week will feature Gahongayire’s presentation, Wednesday, April 13 at 10 a.m. in Harman Chapel.
Gahongayire is a secretary general for the Ministry of Gender and Family Promotion. She has also worked with Rwanda’s Ministry of Education and served as a coordinator for the Forum for African Women Educationalists. Her experience also includes service as director and later commissioner of Women Affairs with the Rwandese Patriotic Front. In that position, she was responsible for coordinating and facilitating women empowerment programs, including literacy campaigns, civic education, and social and economic projects for women.
In addition, Gahongayire serves as chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Center for Innovation and Technology Transfer at the Kigali Institute of Science and Technology. She holds degrees in mathematics, zoology, and psychology from Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda, and is currently pursuing advanced training in management at the Hifab International School in Stockholm, Sweden.
The title of Gahongayire’s presentation on April 13 for BC’s Global Education Emphasis Week will be “Reflections on National Healing: The Rwandan Experience.” She will also speak during the week in the community. The college’s select student voice ensemble Praise Singers will perform as part of her BC program.
In addition to Gahongayire’s program, Global Education Emphasis Week will feature merchandise from Ten Thousand Villages, sold throughout the week to support the ministry. Founded by Edna Ruth Byler, a pioneering businesswoman, Ten Thousand Villages is designed to eradicate poverty in underdeveloped countries by providing sustainable economic opportunities for artisans by creating a viable marketplace for their products in North America. Those products will be available for sale during BC’s Global Education Emphasis Week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day in Shott Hall.
Among the other events slated for Global Education Emphasis Week: a film titled “Hotel Rwanda,” Monday, April 11 at 8 p.m. in Lansdell 310; a Peggy Brown Soap Ministry presentation, Wednesday, April 13 at 4 p.m. in Shott Hall; a presentation and discussion titled “Recent Representations of the Muslim Faith in Media,” Thursday, April 14 at 4 p.m. in Lansdell 111; Tai Chi, Thursday, April 14 at 5:15 p.m. in Easley Library; an exploration of study abroad, Friday, April 15 at 10 a.m. in the Student Activities Center; and a Brazilian Fest: Food, Music and Culture, Friday, April 15 at 6 p.m. in Shott Hall.
For additional details about Bluefield College’s Global Education Emphasis Week, contact Dr. Maria Zalduondo, director of Global Education, by e-mail at [email protected] or by phone at 276-326-4271.