Sara Cleaver

• public http://sarbear79.blogspot.com/
• cake 4 April, 1990

Hi, everyone!!!
As most of you know, I am currently teaching high school science in American Samoa at Leone High School through an organization called WorldTeach. Supplies are very limited, and as a volunteer I do not have enough money to purchase supplies for my classroom and my 100+ students. I want to improve these students' education, ( I have 10th, 11th, and 12th graders, so it is a very important time for them- if they will graduate and what they will do after graduation). Many of these students will not go on to college, many are trying to go to the military but also may not pass the exams. Many dream of going to the NFL or to play football in college. Some want to be police officers, even a few hope to be governors of American Samoa some day. Others have no idea what they will do, but most end up in remedial classes at the local community college and then drop out to go to the streets or find a low-paying job to help out their families.

Most of them are EXTREMELY talented in the arts- singing, drawing, painting, acting- and would be top candidates for programs in the U.S. if only they knew to get their other grades up and apply themselves. I know I can only maybe achieve this with a few students this year, but hopefully I can make that difference for one or two of them. You will notice most of the supplies I've added to the wish list are arts and crafts supplies- that will be, I think, the most effective way for me to get the concepts of science across to them this year. Today they were the most behaved I've seen them so far while they were drawing, and none of them wanted to stop.

I emailed you all a wishlist previously to share what I've noticed we will be needing throughout the year if anyone is looking to help but does not know how to from across the world! I had an incredibly generous donation and received everything on the list, so my class is set on a lot of stuff for the time being. I thought it would be easier to just send out a general list of supplies we will probably need to replenish throughout the year, and also thought that it may be cheaper and more efficient to not go through amazon and instead have people either purchase items themselves (and not pay shipping through amazon) and then send them altogether in a flat rate box, or drop them with someone else who is also going to send items and consolidate to keep shipping costs lower. Another option, though I know people generally like to choose what they purchase (I know I do!) is sending a check to my mom, and she will send me the money so I can get what I need for school down here. There are school supplies here, they are just more expensive.

My mom’s address is:
Linda Levin
15 Winthrop Road
Lexington, MA 02421

If you want to communicate with her about sending anything, her email is lindalevin@rcn.com

Feel free to email me if you are planning on buying something and not sure if I have maybe already received a lot of a certain thing.
My shipping address is:
Sara Cleaver
P.O. Box 982768
Pago Pago, 96799
American Samoa

It takes less than 2 weeks for things to get here, and then I make a trip once I get a card in my PO box in Leone to Pago (about 40 mins on bus from Leone) to pick up packages.

Things for the classroom in general are on this list and I’m hoping to update this from time to time as I find new things that could be useful or receive shipments, (right now I have a lot from the first donation of items)

Additionally, there are certain things that I could never get enough of or never sick of…such as:
-almond butter
-steel cut oatmeal
-annie’s mac and cheese

wink wink.

Thank you so, so much! I really appreciate any donations for my year in AmSam!!- fa'afetai tele lava!

Love,
Sara