Supporting Education
More than 775 million people over the age of 15 are illiterate. That’s 17 percent of the world’s adult population.
Our goal is to strengthen the capacity of communities to support basic education and literacy, reduce gender disparity in education, and increase adult literacy. We support education for all children and literacy for children and adults.
How Rotary makes help happen
We take action to empower educators to inspire learning at all ages.
Teacher training
We share our knowledge and experience with educators and other professionals who work with vulnerable populations.
Adult literacy
Rotary members fight adult illiteracy by working with local advocates to offer community literacy programs.
Rotary scholarships
Rotary members invest in the future by giving scholarships to students who have the potential to change our communities.
Educating refugees
A university president and Rotary club fight Boko Haram to bring education and food to refugees in Nigeria.
Rotary members make amazing things happen, like:
Opening schools: In Northern Uganda, Rotary members opened a girls’ school to break the cycle of poverty and social imbalance.
Teaching adults to read: Rotary members in the United States partnered with ProLiteracy Detroit to recruit and train tutors after a study showed that more than half of the local adult population was functionally illiterate.
New teaching methods: The SOUNS program in South Africa, Puerto Rico and the United States teaches educators how to improve literacy by teaching children to recognize letters by sounds instead of names.
Making schools healthy: Rotarians are providing clean, fresh water to every public school in Lebanon so students can be healthier and get a better education.
Enhancing educational systems: In Uganda, Rotary clubs are working with the Global Partnership for Education and local and national governments to advance life-long learning opportunities for poor and marginalized children.
The Rotary Foundation supports education through scholarships, donations, and service projects around the world.
Our impact on education
500
adults raised their reading levels by three grades in Detroit
$
100
millions
in grants to get clean water in ugandan schools
'' When you teach somebody how to read, they have that for a lifetime. It ripples through the community, one by one.''
Mark Wilson
Rotary Club member
Help spread the word about Rotary’s efforts to support education.
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What can you do to support education and bring literacy to everyone?
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