Blog

One to go [2019-09-29]

Just one more new computer lab to install this year!  We will travel to Olturmet Secondary School Wednesday to begin the work.  We’ll be joined by our partners from Habari Node and Arusha Node Marie, who make our work so much easier.  This past week we finished two installations, including our second MacBook workstation lab for the A-Level students at Mlangarini Secondary School.  We also installed a computer lab at Olokii Secondary School, and we’ll return to Olokii this coming week for the teacher orientation. 

Mid-Point [2019-09-21]

The busy schedule here in Tanzania has continued since the last blog post.  We completed installation and training at Einoti Secondary School, so we’re halfway done with our planned 2019 expansion.  This coming week brings another two lab installations, along with visits to existing labs.  Slowly but surely, we’re making progress toward our trip goals.  We couldn’t do it without our partners: Arusha District Council, Arusha Region, Habari Node, Arusha Node Marie, and of course Reneal Team Tanzania!

News from Arusha [2019-09-10]

It’s already our third week here in Arusha!  The first week was a whirlwind, with visits to four schools and installation of two new computer labs.  It was really a joy to be joined by Reneal Board Member Steve Guerzon and his wife Pam Metcalf.  Just like last year when Board members Sharon Fingold and Katherine Yen (and spouses Antonio Martinez and Marcus Lee) visited Tanzania, the new perspectives are invaluable.  Thank you Steve and Pam!  And of course we are thrilled to be back together with Reneal Team Tanzania!

One more week [2019-08-15]

It’s always a shock to find ourselves a week away from a big Reneal work trip, in this case to Tanzania.  We started dreaming about this trip last October while still in Arusha, and that vision has carried us through these past months.  We’ve had ups and downs wondering if everything would come together.  And now suddenly here we are, packing and finalizing the schedule and working the last-minute details with Reneal School Liasion David Nyangaka.  It is very reassuring to have our plans in David’s capable hands.

A flurry of activity [2019-08-06]

Since the last blog post, Reneal Team Philippines (Lloyd Tuñacao, Rhog Sampan, and Ervin Formentera) has carried on with an active schedule of school visits in Cebu.  Tomorrow the Team is on its way to northern Cebu to visit five of the schools with Reneal systems up there.  We are so grateful to have these energetic and skilled guys keeping the Reneal systems running in the Philippines!  And in Arusha, Reneal School Liaison David Nyangaka has us well-positioned for a successful start to Reneal’s 2019 projects in Tanzania.

Making the rounds [2019-07-21]

The Reneal Team in the Philippines, Lloyd Tuñacao, Rhog Sampan, and Ervin Formentera, got off to a great start this week visiting the Reneal schools in Cebu.  They are making repairs and helping the teachers make the new list of students for this school year.  The student list makes it very easy for students to sign in, and it automatically generates a personal folder for the student the first time that student signs in at the beginning of the school year.  The guys have already visited Tabok and Jagobiao National High Schools in Mandaue City and Tayud and Jugan National High Schools in Consolacion.  More visits are scheduled for this week.  We are so grateful to have this hard-working team!

Planning and Prep [2019-07-13]

Things are heating up here at Reneal Headquarters.  Neal has been in the throes of software development, and I’m doing testing, packing, and planning.  Reneal Team Philippines is about to start school visits in Cebu, and Reneal Team Tanzania is helping prepare for our rapidly approaching trip.  It’s all-hands-on-deck right now, with schools in both countries in session again.

Summer news [2019-06-28]

The last month has been relatively quiet here at Reneal headquarters.  Neal is on the mend from shoulder surgery, so he hasn’t been able to work as much as usual.  Reneal Team Philippines is waiting for the enrollment database to finalize before they make their beginning-of-the-year school visits.  And it’s the mid-year break in Tanzania schools.  Nonetheless, we’ve been keeping busy with some unexpected tasks.

Happy New (School) Year! [2019-06-09]

It’s the beginning of a brand new school year in the Philippines!  Students reported for the first day of classes on Monday.  However teachers have already been back to work for a couple of weeks now, between in-service training and the annual “brigade eskwela” week of cleaning and organizing.  And after a quiet summer, my Facebook Messenger began pinging steadily as the school year commenced. 

A new frontier for Reneal [2019-06-01]

This last week has brought an exciting new development for Reneal.  We have received a generous donation of Apple MacBook Pro and MacBook Air laptops for deployment in Tanzania!  Neal and I have been googling, experimenting, tweaking, and testing to figure out the best options for their use.  There is still a lot of work to do, but this donation is opening up new opportunities and approaches for Reneal.

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