Holy Cross Joins Effort to Raise Funds for "The BluePack Project" in Afghanistan

WORCESTER, Mass. – Holy Cross is participating in "The BluePack Project," an initiative to provide 200,000 specially made backpacks filled with basic school and hygiene supplies to Afghan children. The project was created by the Academy for Educational Development (AED) and is supported by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.

BluePacks are currently available for a donation of $10 each at the Holy Cross Bookstore on the first floor of the Hogan Campus Center. A portion of the cost will go to teacher training and other initiatives to help rebuild Afghanistan's capacity to educate its children. Currently in Afghanistan, few schools are intact and education supplies are virtually nonexistent. According to UNICEF, only about one-third of all school-aged children in Afghanistan are in school.

The BluePacks contain the basic materials needed for school, including pencils, notebooks, ink, traditional bamboo pens, and wooden "takhti" writing boards. They will also provide soap, brushes, combs, balls and jump ropes.

AED's goal is to raise a total of $2 million for the project. AED, a nonprofit organization committed to solving critical social problems, has been reforming and improving educational systems worldwide for more than 30 years and has extensive experience working with education in Afghanistan.

The College's goal is to raise $10,000 by April 1, 2003.