Development Practice Q&A: Nora Zenczak MPA-DP ’13

Almost a year after graduating from SIPA, Nora Zenczak MPA-DP ’13, is back in preschool. With a career commitment to early childhood development at a global level, she worked briefly for Save the Children, and now supports the newest of Village Health Works’ programs as the NGO’s Education Director in Burundi. As a new semester begins, she spoke with current student Sarayu Adeni MPA-DP ’15 about her latest Burundian school projects while reflecting on the lessons she learned as a student herself.

Village Health Works (VHW), a Burundian organization founded by former Columbia student Deo Niyizonkiza, mostly focuses on building community health networks. What education-related projects are you working on?

My primary role is to oversee a UNICEF-supported preschool project. We run what we hope will soon be a model preschool in Kigutu and support 32 additional public preschools throughout two communes. The project is also multi-sector and integrates health, economic development, and agriculture initiatives into early learning efforts. Holistic child development is the foundation for sustainable community development, and I really believe in the project that I’m leading. We are facing many challenges, but VHW is a dynamic organization and the team is committed to making the project successful!

In addition to early childhood development, VHW’s education work also includes support for the local primary school, such as after-school programming and teacher training, a traditional music program, adult literacy, and the U.S. State Department English Access Microscholarship Program.

What are some of the biggest issues of concern in early childhood development?

Evaluation is a big issue in early childhood development and is certainly one challenging me right now! Given that this type of work encompasses everything from exclusive breastfeeding to diet diversity to pre-numeracy, assessment of early childhood projects can be immensely challenging. With child, family, teacher, school leader, and local government beneficiaries, understanding the impact of broad projects is quite complex. I am working with my team and reaching out to colleagues and experts to lay a plan for our project.

Where was your professional summer placement during your MPA-DP? What was a challenging lesson you learned there?

I was placed in the Millennium Village Project site in Mayange, Rwanda. I conducted an early childhood development situation analysis at the village and national levels. I designed the project with the team in Mayange and in conjunction with advisers at the Earth Institute and Teachers College. I sought to understand, in the years after passing a national early childhood development policy, how Rwanda had moved forward in meeting the holistic needs of its young children and which gaps remained. I also provided general support to the education team.

I learned a real lesson about communication. To try to understand traditional practices and beliefs related to the care and education of young children, I held a focus group of mothers, fathers, and other young child caregivers in Mayange. Some of the group was then able to access early childhood development programming supported by MVP and others weren’t. After asking questions like, ‘what is the role of your young children in your family?’ and ‘do you think it is important for young children to be exposed to education?’ I was then asked what I planned to do about the obvious need for greater support for parents in the area. While I hoped that my project was a first step toward an expansion of early childhood programming at MVP and in Rwanda, I didn’t immediately have an answer for this concerned parent about what I could do to serve him and his family. This moment reminded me that clear communication of expectations is essential for success in community-led development and that long-and short-term needs must be juggled simultaneously.

Working now in the field of education, you know that learning never ends. What lessons did you learn back at SIPA that are important to you now?

Deep breathing. Regression analysis, classroom observation techniques, and rain-fed agriculture water storage needs assessment may all come in handy someday at work, but the very best thing I learned at SIPA is how to stay (relatively) calm in the face of confusion and difficulty. Working with others to solve problems and the ability to hang in there during tough times will serve you more regularly at work than any technical skill, particularly in a development context. I’m not suggesting students shouldn’t identify needed skills within their fields and set out to acquire them, but there is so much to be gained from the learning process at SIPA as well.

Any extra tidbits of advice for current students?

Be very strategic throughout school. For example, during my professional summer placement I sought out as many experts in my field in Rwanda as would have a meeting with me. My interviews not only helped me analyze early childhood development in Rwanda, but also connected me to many great organizations with which I continued to engage back at home. After Rwanda, I had the opportunity to work on two projects with great international NGOs based in the U.S. as a result of making my commitment to early childhood and willingness to work hard known.

— Sarayu Adeni MPA-DP ’15

Learn more about Columbia SIPA’s MPA in Development Practice.