Access Microscholarship Program graduates have more chances be accepted by other educational programs, even by universities - Harold Samuels, Regional English Language Officer

The U.S. Embassy representatives - Harold Samuels, Regional English Language Officer and Olga Paterova, English Programs Coordinator - tell about the Program in an interview to Kazinform Agency.

Could you tell, please, about the goals and objectives of the Access Microscholarship Program?

Mr. Harold Samuels: The Access Microscholarship Program is a program for students who study the English language after school on weekdays or on weekends. They spend five or six hours per week studying English and hopefully this program will help them improve their English language skills. The children who participate are teenagers and their age is 14-17. An important criterion is that they are from socially-economically disadvantaged backgrounds. That is a general description of the program. Of course, the goal of the program is to help them improve their language skills. I have met the students who participated in the program. Mrs. Paterova met with the same students when they began learning English and a year or more later, she can tell you, they do make progress.

How do you select the children for the Program? Where do you receive information about the children from the low-income families?

Mr. Harold Samuels: In every city there are persons responsible for running the Program. We call them providers. The providers - schools or associations - are the ones who select the students. The students give documents from their families proving their income level and showing other factors related to the applications. The providers are organizers of the Program who are responsible for the selection of the students. They work under our guidance and instructions.

Do you organize a contest for them?

Mrs. Olga Paterova: Yes, our providers do. There are so many people interested in the program and there are so many applications for it. There were about 173 applications in Astana and only 20 children were chosen, of course, it was really competitive. Children should be motivated because they will have intensive English lessons. And therefore they need to begin this Program, to pass it and finish it, in order to get certificates and be the graduates of the Program. It is very important, that is why it is a competitive program.

Are there any similar programs in Kazakhstan allowing talented children from disadvantaged sectors to learn the English language? What other programs could the U.S. Embassy offer Kazakhstani students?

Mr. Harold Samuels: We are responsible for the Access Microscholarship Program. Probably there are such programs, but I don't know about them. The U.S. Embassy offers several programs for Kazakhstani students; however, those programs are managed by other people - the programs for high school students, university students to study in the United States. There are other individuals here at the U.S. Embassy who manage these programs.

You work with eight providers in seven Kazakh cities currently. Do you plan to increase their number?

Mr. Harold Samuels: It depends on the next budget of the program. Every year we are given a certain budget and are told how many students we can invite to participate in the program. We'll know about the funding the next summer. I hope it will remain at least at the same level, but everything will be clear the next summer.

Olga Paterova: There were only 61 students involved in the program in 2007 when the program started here, but now we have 225 students in Kazakhstan which means that their number has been already increased.

What opportunities does the program give its participants? Does your program allow its graduates entering the United States colleges and high schools?

Mr. Harold Samuels: The greatest opportunity is that the students improve their skills in speaking and using the English language. And they have a better chance of being able to participate in other programs. Of course, there is no guarantee that if you graduate from Access you will be accepted by another program, an American university or an American high school. But I think it greatly increases the chance that they will have more opportunities. After two years or 360 hours of classroom instruction, in addition to what they receive at schools, they have much better chances of doing well on their exams and being accepted by other educational programs, and even by universities.

How long have you been working in Kazakhstan? What are your impressions of our country, our capital city?

Mr. Harold Samuels: I have been working here since September. It's the first time I've come to Kazakhstan to live and work. I have been really impressed by Astana, especially with its futuristic style of architecture. The people here are very friendly and kind, and the students I have met have also been pleasant. I've been in other cities of Kazakhstan. I have been to west- Aktau, Uralsk, Aktobe, then Ust-Kamenogorsk, Almaty and Karaganda. I am looking forward to continuing my work here, meeting more students and seeing more participants in our Program.

Thank you for the interview!