Multi-National Division-Central

Story by Sgt. 1st Class Stacy Niles

By Sgt. 1st Class Stacy Niles
214th Fire Brigade Public Affairs Officer

FORWARD OPERATING BASE DELTA, Iraq – While the school's infrastructure may be behind the times, students' education has been thrust into the modern era.

The Al Kut girls secondary school received an Internet center complete with 10 computers and furniture. The school, established in 1932, educates 1,000 females, grades 10 to 12.

The center will be used by female students throughout the province, said the school manager, Zahrah Aljdrey. Students will now be able to do research and work on projects. The center will also allow the girls to complete exams they would otherwise have to travel to Baghdad to take.

Aljdrey said the computers will help students get a better education and will give them the opportunity to learn about different cultures.

For Sgt. Amanda Timmer, the Wasit provincial reconstruction team head of women's initiative and program manager, the project provided her with a feeling of satisfaction.

"It was great especially after talking with the girls and seeing how optimistic and energetic they were," Timmer said. "It was as if they could sense that the world was at their fingertips, like they knew they were the future of Iraq."

"They already had the initiative, but this gives them the tools to help accomplish their initiatives and ambitions," she said.

The project was a cooperative effort between the Wasit PRT, the Wasit provincial council and the Iraqi director general of education.

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