Remember obsessively preparing for your yearbook photo? Combing your hair until your scalp hurt, practicing your smile? Whatever your ritual was, yearbook photo day was always a big deal. Yearbook Afghanistan, a new book by the all-around awesome philanthropist and model Kyleigh Kuhn, brings back those memories, but the subjects are beaming schoolkids in Afghanistan, where Kuhn funds various schools through the grassroots charity she co-founded with her mother, the news anchor Cheryl Jennings. I visited Kyleigh at her home in Williamsburg to talk about her charity and the country that inspired this remarkable project.
Photos by Matt Kelly
Shannan Elinor Smith: Why did you start your charity organization, The Roots of Peace, and its Penny Campaign to raise funds?
Kyleigh Kuhn: When I was 13, I visited the Balkans and met students whose school's soccer field was a mine field. It shocked me to see kids my own age without a safe school. I wanted to do something but didn't know how. After September 11th, I was reminded of how students are the ones most negatively affected by a war they don't even understand, so I started working to raise coins by speaking to high schools in the San Francisco Bay Area. We raised enough to refurbish and build six schools!
What obstacles did you encounter while building schools in Afghanistan?
The most difficult aspect for me is not being able to visit the schools whenever I want to. I've been there three times and will be going again in the next few months. I'd really like to be there more often to watch the kids grow! It takes two traveling days and a big wad of cash to get there... I also have to be cognizant of the security situation, so my trips have to be limited.
Is there a difference between boys' and girls' curriculums in schools?
There is no difference at all when they are in class! However, most girls are forced to stop their education when they become women. This can be remedied by offering all-girls high schools––like the one we built in Bamiyan. Most families want their girls to get an education, but are not comfortable sending them to study with boys their age after they hit maturity.
Walk me through a normal school day in Afghanistan.
The school day is relatively similar to ours, albeit the children go to Dari class instead of English class, and they're taught Islamic Studies instead of American Studies. At recess, the girls walk around the school yard chatting and giggling while the boys play soccer. Every now and then, there is a stark reminder that you are still in a war zone. For instance, their school bell is crafted from a metal missile shell they hang from a tree.
How did you find the staff for the schools?
We believe that the community should provide the faculty––it's important to me that they feel invested in the school and how it runs. The last thing I would want to do would be to tell them how to teach their children. We make sure the quality of the education is up to par, but we leave the school to the community. It is their school, not ours.
The photographs in the book are more candid then a typical yearbook photo and full of personality. Did the students “dress up” like we do here for yearbooks photos? Had they ever taken a yearbook photo before?
The students had never taken a yearbook photo before! Most Afghans pose for photos with a stoic look, rarely smiling. So I had to jump around behind the photographer and make faces to help the kids smile! Then there were the kids that were very cool about it, giving a cute pose as though they
Photos by Matt Kelly
Shannan Elinor Smith: Why did you start your charity organization, The Roots of Peace, and its Penny Campaign to raise funds?
Kyleigh Kuhn: When I was 13, I visited the Balkans and met students whose school's soccer field was a mine field. It shocked me to see kids my own age without a safe school. I wanted to do something but didn't know how. After September 11th, I was reminded of how students are the ones most negatively affected by a war they don't even understand, so I started working to raise coins by speaking to high schools in the San Francisco Bay Area. We raised enough to refurbish and build six schools!
What obstacles did you encounter while building schools in Afghanistan?
The most difficult aspect for me is not being able to visit the schools whenever I want to. I've been there three times and will be going again in the next few months. I'd really like to be there more often to watch the kids grow! It takes two traveling days and a big wad of cash to get there... I also have to be cognizant of the security situation, so my trips have to be limited.
Is there a difference between boys' and girls' curriculums in schools?
There is no difference at all when they are in class! However, most girls are forced to stop their education when they become women. This can be remedied by offering all-girls high schools––like the one we built in Bamiyan. Most families want their girls to get an education, but are not comfortable sending them to study with boys their age after they hit maturity.
Walk me through a normal school day in Afghanistan.
The school day is relatively similar to ours, albeit the children go to Dari class instead of English class, and they're taught Islamic Studies instead of American Studies. At recess, the girls walk around the school yard chatting and giggling while the boys play soccer. Every now and then, there is a stark reminder that you are still in a war zone. For instance, their school bell is crafted from a metal missile shell they hang from a tree.
How did you find the staff for the schools?
We believe that the community should provide the faculty––it's important to me that they feel invested in the school and how it runs. The last thing I would want to do would be to tell them how to teach their children. We make sure the quality of the education is up to par, but we leave the school to the community. It is their school, not ours.
The photographs in the book are more candid then a typical yearbook photo and full of personality. Did the students “dress up” like we do here for yearbooks photos? Had they ever taken a yearbook photo before?
The students had never taken a yearbook photo before! Most Afghans pose for photos with a stoic look, rarely smiling. So I had to jump around behind the photographer and make faces to help the kids smile! Then there were the kids that were very cool about it, giving a cute pose as though they