Campus Celebration

We founded HMA to provide opportunities for hands-on, project-based learning in which students are asked to think—and do—for themselves, providing an alternative to the “chalk and talk” teaching and rote memorization of most Ethiopian schools.

Last week on campus, during a spectacular, two-day “Celebration of Thinking and Learning”, we saw just how successful we have been!

Before an audience of peers, invited guests and media, students presented one impressive project after another. We saw, for example, a set of 3D printed replicas of HMA buildings, created in the Design Lab; interactive geography and history presentations; biochem research connecting classroom concepts to real-life challenges, such as an analysis of pollution and proposed remediation in Lake Hawassa; powerful theatrical performances; and the courageous sharing of deeply personal essays. Hours of hard work by students and faculty alike paid off in an event full of style and substance, punctuated by the dramatic water rocket launched sky-high from the middle of the academic complex!