Please attend our KIVA FAIR

TUESDAY, MAY 20TH LAKES MIDDLE SCHOOL 8:30 - 9:30 AM

Detroit Lakes students have given 242 loans at $25 & $50 each in 40 different across the globe. Detroit Lakes 8th Graders to Share KIVA Project

$50 loans to individuals and small Asia. This project aligns with KIVA FAIR groups through the KIVA program. Minnesota State Social Studies standards. Students are learning Tuesday KIVA (www.kiva.org) is a non- much, but most importantly, May 20th profit organization with a mission through the KIVA project, students to connect people through lending are learning that they can make a to alleviate . Leveraging difference in the lives of others; 8:30 - 9:00 Fair the and a worldwide even those who live 1000’s of in DLMS Commons network of micro-finance miles away. institutions, Kiva lets these 9:00 - 9:30 KIVA Video individuals lend as little as $25 to help create opportunity around in DLMS Auditorium the . 100% of every dollar lent on Kiva goes directly towards The Detroit Lakes Rotary Clubs funding loans; Kiva does not take and 8th grade public school a cut. students in Detroit Lakes have ! joined forces in a creative DLMS students have worked business partnership. Thanks to throughout the 2013-2014 school a donation of $5800 from Rotary year on this KIVA project. They the students in the 8th grade have given 242 loans across the classes at the Detroit Lakes globe; beginning in South Middle School are in the process America, moving across the of helping to alleviate poverty Atlantic to Africa, and most around the world by giving $25 or recently giving loans in SouthEast

the number of loans given Students gave loans totaling $6,700 thanks to the generosity of the this school year on five Detroit Lakes Breakfast Rotary Club, the Detroit Lakes Noon Rotary continents in 40 Club and the District Rotary Organization. Each loan was for $25 or $50 242 countries. $6700 KIVA Documentary Narration

Loan Process ­ Step 1

The selection of KIVA loan recipients is done in a three step process.

In the first step students work individually to select an entrepreneur who they think a $25 loan should be offered to.

Using school issued ipads student access the KIVA website. On the KIVA website there are generally close to 5000 entrepreneurs who are seeking loans anywhere from $100 to $5000.

Students do not have the time or energy to sort thru 5000 possible loan applicants so the KIVA website helps them with this process. Through the use of modern technology students can narrow their searches simply with the click of a mouse.

For example, students can narrow their search by choosing to lend to a male or a female. They can narrow their search by region of the world or even . Searches can be narrowed by limiting to groups or individuals. They can narrow their search by choosing a certain sector of the workforce, such as a carpenter or a seamstress. And lastly, they can narrow their search by attributes such as only providing funds to entrepreneurs who are requesting loans in war zones.

For example, a student, simply by clicking the mouse could say “I want to give a loan to a group of women living in a war zone who are attempting to start a retail business.” By doing this the student has immediately narrowed their search from a limitless possibility of 5000 to less than ten.

Once the individual student has selected a single loan recipient or group, it is then that student’s responsibility to begin the formation of a verbal debate to support the selection of that loanee. Simply put, students are asked to put on paper three reasons why we should give a loan to the entrepreneur that student selected. In a just a few brief minutes each student will be asked to share in an oral debate their arguments for selecting this loan recipient to receive a $25 loan from the Detroit Lakes KIVA Club.

Loan Process ­ Step 2

In the second step students are put into groups of 2 or 3 and are given a set amount of time to select a single recipient. This single loanee, as determined by this group of students, will be given a loan of $25 in just a few short minutes.

To accomplish this task students follow this procedure. Again, making use of the school issued ipads, each student presents an oral argument to their group members on why they feel their loanee should be awarded a loan. Student take turns sharing and debating the virtues of each possibility. They share images and maps. Stories are read and shared. One important point here is that no student is allowed to talk for a second time until all students have talked at least once.

This oral debate is often enthusiastic and invigorating. For example, some students may argue that a certain loanee only has $25 to go to reach their $1000 goal and this $25 loan will put that loanee “over the top.” While another student will just as eagerly argue that their loanee has received zero dollars on a $500 loan and they want to be the first to “get them off the ground.”

When all students have had the opportunity to share, the difficult process of selecting one loanee begins, At this point there are no rules. Students are allowed almost any process to determine who the final recipient will be. Many strategies have been employed from secret balloting to luck of the draw.

When a final entrepreneur is selected the group of students immediately announce their selection to the classroom teacher and the loan is instantaneously given through the click of a mouse.

Loan Process ­ Step 3

Now that the difficult process of selecting a loan recipient is over the fun part begins.

The next step is that each group of students is assigned the task of standing in front of their classmates and making a short verbal presentation on the loan recipient. Each student is assigned a different task.

An image of the loan recipient is displayed on the classroom smartboard. One student, having the most challenging part of this process, is assigned the task of sharing the loan recipient’s story. In a nutshell the student tells us who the loan recipient is, where they are from, any special considerations we should be aware of such as family or medical concerns, and lastly why they selected this entrepreneur.

The second and third students tasks are not as challenging, but just as important. One student points out on a world map where the entrepreneur lives and the third student places a pin flag on a world map signifying that the loan was officially completed.