Focus Groups
Focus Groups in action
There are currently six active Focus Groups at the College.
Because I Am
East Campus
Because I Am (BIA) is a forum for the discussion of contemporary gender issues in the world. By challenging male and female stereotypes and questioning ‘gender norms’, our students BIA strive to change how gender is talked about in day-to-day conversations.
While the BIA Focus Group has a core mission, it has a fluid identity. The group is not tied to a grass-roots NGO, but rather a call for shared empathy and understanding to come together in discussion and action.
Equality
East Campus
Equality Focus Group is centered on LGBTQ+ issues, with an overall purpose to forge an accepting and understanding space within our school for members of the LGBTQ+ community, while focusing discussion on LGBTQ+ issues at a college and local level as well as on an international scale.
The group is a safe space for discussion, dedicated to making the world a welcoming place for LGBTQ+ individuals. Students work towards this goal by encouraging outward support for LGBTQ+ students and teachers, and fostering opportunities for discussion. The group organises a Pink Dot event on campus each year, where Middle and High School students are encouraged to wear pink to school in a show of allyship for the LGBTQ+ community.
Generation. Education. Period. (G.E.P)
East Campus
The G.E.P. group has three overarching goals:
• raising awareness about period poverty
• working to end menstrual shaming
• promoting sustainable sanitary products
The group addresses issues that are important because countless women around the globe experience this, regardless of geographic location or even socio-economic status.
As part of a journey which has seen them research and test a number of options, students have recently partnered with Freedom Cups, a business in Singapore that sells menstrual cups and also donates them in Lesser Economically Developed Countries (LEDCs). Because of their take-up in Singapore and likely acceptance in the target communities, and the sustainable nature of this option (made of medical-grade silicone, each cup can be reused for 15 years), the students have organised for the promotion and sale of Freedom Cups in the College Shop.
Knit-a-Square
East Campus
Knit-a-Square takes a hands-on approach to improving the well-being of children affected by HIV and AIDS in South Africa. The group is a part of a larger, global initiative that sends hand-knitted or crocheted squares to the charity, Knit A Square (KAS). They also strive to educate, and involve the UWCSEA community in their mission to reduce the impact of HIV and AIDS, through an annual Knit-A-Thon event.
The long-term focus for this group is centred around addressing SDG 3: Good health and well-being and SDG 10: Reduced inequalities.
Amala (formerly Sky School)
East Campus
Amala, formerly known as Sky School, is a global high school for refugees who want to change the world. Two UWC alumni, who met while working on the UWC international office at one of the heights of the crisis in Europe, launched Sky School in 2016. It has since grown to provide education for refugees living in refugee camps in six countries.
Amala launched their full diploma programme in June 2020, which is specifically designed to meet the needs of refugees. The diploma programme comprises 10 courses and over 1000 hours of learning, taught through combination of both online platforms and in-person sessions with facilitators on the ground.
Voice with Refugees
East Campus
Started in 2015, Voices with Refugees stands for and with those whose words might go unspoken. The aim is to raise awareness and advocate for refugee rights and all human rights around the world. Students have the opportunity to discuss, research and take action on issues of importance where disempowered groups have been denied a voice.
Students also host annual events, the most well known being Write for Rights, a 24-hour writing marathon in which we write letters to different heads of state and leaders about human rights abuses in their respective regions. Together, students aim to connect with and give a voice to refugees and marginalised groups all across the world.