Suncoast professor works with teachers and students in Africa

Reported by: Meredith Garofalo
Email: mgarofalo@mysuncoast.com
Last Update: 8/12/2011 6:20 pm

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Woman trains teachers in Africa to help underprivileged children

Dr. Lynn McBrien

SARASOTA - A month ago, we brought you the story of a Suncoast professor who planned to head to Africa in the hopes of changing the lives of children in refugee camps. Now, Dr. Lynn McBrien is back.

For the past couple years, University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee associate professor Dr. McBrien has taken time away from her life in the states to help kids overseas. "I've been able to go to Africa; first to Ghana and now to Uganda, where I'm working with children who were directly affected by war," she says.

Dr. McBrien was taking assessments from those trips to come up with a plan of action to help them move forward with her colleague and world expert in trauma John Woodall. "Many of the children that have come back from the bush or that were living in the displaced camps are either so despondent and despairing or they quickly flare up in anger," Dr. McBrien said.

Her efforts were in hopes of helping the children understand that they have a choice to better their lives despite any struggles they encountered in the past. "Recognizing their strengths and finding what is resilient in them to say I know this is happening but I make this choice instead."

Dr. McBrien was working with schools and organizations through workshops. She trained adults with a different style of teaching: self exploration and discovery. "I tell you, 'you have strength.' What does that mean to somebody if they're feeling in despair? They have to go through activities to discover it."

Dr. McBrien encouraged the children to work with their teachers and mentors to come up with something that would make their life better at school or through a program and change it. "So they start to work on these small projects and see that in maybe 2 to 3 months, that problem has been fixed," she added.

Giving these kids, once feeling worthless, strength.and security they need to become role models not only for each other, but children in the United States. "People listen, because they know in the depths profoundly, what it means not to have peace and freedom," says Dr. McBrien.

Dr. McBrien said this trip was very successful and is planning her next one in November. If you would like to help her out on her trip or even donate items for the students such as school supplies or even laptops, please contact her at jlmcbrien@sar.usf.edu.

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jlmbkb - 8/13/2011 5:47 PM

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I sincerely thank you for asking this important question, Paxton. I don't know your occupation. If you were a lawyer working in mortgages or in divorce, I could say to you, why don't you work in criminal law or in immigration law? How would you answer? Or in business: why do you buy from Chinese factories that forego medical needs of their workers to get a better price? And on and on. I think it is just great that your doctor friends can finance themselves! I wish I could, truly. What a privilege. I can only guess that their occupations have afforded them this luxury. Mine has not. Asking about why this child (especially within one's own country borders) and not that child is one of nationalism. I agree with you that there is need in this country, and I am grateful that people are addressing these needs. Much as I love where I live, I am not a nationalist. I don't see any difference between working with people of need in one world region versus another. My passion drives my work. I am committed to working with the people who are most neglected and who, in many cases, are blamed in spite of the fact that they have been victimized. I could not agree more that there is dire poverty in this country. However, I am not aware of children in the US who have been forced to cut off the lips, ears, arms, etc. of their parents, brothers, other relatives, in order to be disowned and driven from the people that they love, only to be rejected when they escape from that life in their desire to return to normal. I don't know of any US school that uses only a large pot over firewood in the open air to cook for 200 students - when it is not raining. Additionally, I have found a warm welcome to work together in Uganda and in a Liberian refugee camp that I have not experienced in the US. I have entrance in Lira and Accra that I do not have in Detroit. One cannot work where one has not been welcomed.

paxton - 8/13/2011 3:08 PM

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I think her work sounds like it is challenging to say the least...I have a number of Doctor friends that travel America helping the poor that don't want publicity and finance themselves...In this day and age of so much poverty and despair in America why do Americans feel the have to go outside our borders to help when we have children starving and lacking proper medical attention right here at home ? Half the children of Appalachia can't read and write and are luck to get one meal a day....Why Africa Dr McBrien and not Appalachia...or Harlem or Detroit ?

jlmbkb - 8/13/2011 11:48 AM

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To Big pillow - Thanks for the comment. Actually, it was much cooler there than it is in FL right now! But yes, you are right. Diet and hydration are critically important. A short news clip can only give a tiny snapshot of the whole picture and project. As the report states, some children feel despair or anger. But I'd say that the majority are astounding in their desire to become well-educated leaders and to engage their country in maintaining peace and restoring prosperity. The challenges are great, in terms of widespread community acceptance for their return (thousands were young children when they were forced to perform atrocities and kill, or be tortured and killed by the LRA), and many community members still fear these children and mourn deaths caused by them, understandably. There is ongoing need for reconciliation, and some organizations are having great success with this through arts-based programs. There are many needs - more school placement (roughly half of the children are not in school, either because they cannot afford basic items such as paper, pencils, uniforms; or because the family needs them to help procure food...), better teacher training and pay, HIV/sex ed counseling, and more. In spite of such challenges, the people I have met and count as my friends are among the warmest, most welcoming I have ever known. They work SO hard and care so deeply about the future of their children and their country. I have learned much in my time at Buduburam Refugee Camp, Ghana; and Lira, Uganda. The children, teachers, and hard-working adults at every level of society are a source of inspiration to me. John and I hope to bring programmatic support, but the people with whom we work are our teachers, and it is they who will work together to make this program into something that makes sense for northern Ugandans, not us.

bigpillow78 - 8/12/2011 6:07 PM

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It must be hot over there. I hope they are first working on their diet and hydration.

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