August 20, 2022

Many of the schools in Kurdistan are in bad need of repair and renovation. LDSC contributed funds to renovate 30 schools; many in remote villages. Here Jim is standing in front of one of  ”our” project schools with the contractor, the Principal of the school, and our Barzani Charity Foundation partner.

It was more than a two-hour drive to get to the villages which were less than about 20 miles (as the crow flies) from the Iran border.

Another view of the rather desolate areas we passed through.

This is one of our project schools being renovated. Each school receives a fresh coat of paint both inside and out. Note the water tanks on the roof… that is the only way water is provided within the school. The cow in the yard replaces the need for having a gardener... the cow works for food, and is very low maintenance.

Here is a look at the inside classrooms. The walls have received fresh paint and they installed a drop ceiling to render the room more attractive and hide the old, water-stained, concrete ceiling.

Another view of a classroom with the student desks and benches.  Unfortunately the student desks throughout Kurdistan are comprised of a simple, hard, straight bench and a ‘not so straight’ desk top of warped particle board.

Here an electrician is updating and installing new electrical boxes, lighting, and fans.

Another landscape view through a schoolroom window of ‘the gardener’ tirelessly working outside.

This is a Kurdish school bathroom - similar ones are found throughout the country and in most village homes. The ‘toilets’ are porcelain holes in the floor. Instead of toilet paper, the user (squatter) employs a rubber hose attached to a water pipe (see the pipe at the bottom right in the stall). If there is no water pipe, the user fills up a pitcher (like the blue-green one resting on the sink) and uses that to clean him/herself as well as to clean around the porcelain hole as needed. For the renovation they installed new water pipes through the wall, painted the toilet stall doors, and installed new door and sink hardware.

A view of the sink in the other bathroom.

This is an 8-room schoolhouse with the classrooms opening onto a small atrium. Here the desks are stored during the renovation. New roofing material was installed over all the classrooms.

This is our general contractor in charge of the renovation. Behind him you can see a sink that the children can use for washing their hands before lunch or after playing.

Here is another classroom where you can clearly see the pipe coming down from the ceiling. In winter they bring in a wood-burning stove to help warm the classroom and attach it to the pipe which then acts as a chimney to vent the smoke.

All the interior doors received new locking hardware.

All the schools received new concrete entryways. Interestingly, notice the rock wall to the left. The lower portion was built decades ago in a different era while the top was constructed more uniformly recently.

This shows that rock wall a little better. Also notice that there is no playground at the schools. Most of these schools are so small they have the village children go to school in shifts throughout the day.

The principal at each school invited us to their home for fruit and refreshments. This is a typical Kurdish living room - no furniture. Instead there is always a large area rug with pillows around the perimeter to be used as seats and everyone eats on the floor.