This past week has seen Adero share with you a wide range of exciting content on our social media sites. But for many of us, time is a precious resource, so it can often be extremely challenging to keep track of all the latest features, news, and events.

This is why Adero has developed a handy weekly digest called #RecapFriday. Every Friday, you can visit our WordPress site to get a concise yet informative summary of the past week. Together with the summary, we’ll provide you with a handy link to the full article or feature, should you wish to find out more about each topic.

So without further ado, let’s dive into our very first #RecapFriday!

#MotivationalMonday: #MotivationalMonday is a hashtag event on Twitter, that takes place every Monday. Through it, Twitter users share words of inspiration and encouragement, to motivate each other into tackling the week ahead. It’s a brilliant experience, and Adero was particularly struck by Dr Phil’s contribution:

“You are uniquely designed and gifted, with a core purpose for being in this world.”

Education Conversations was jointly organised by Kagiso Trust, UJ, and City Press. Picture Source: Kagiso Trust

#CharityTuesday: On #CharityTuesday, we discuss issues relevant to the South African NPO scene, with a particular emphasis on Education. This week, Adero released an article on the Education Conversations event jointly organised by Kagiso Trust, the University of Johannesburg, and City Press newspaper. It was held on 11 April 2012 to discuss ways in which the National Planning Commission’s Vision for 2030 can be achieved. The possible solutions identified through this event will form the basis of a submission to the NPC – a submission that Adero is looking forward to with interest. For details, click here.

#StudyWednesday:

The more effort you put in, the more reward you will get out. Picture Source: http://is.gd/ajHyhm

Have you started studying for your exams yet? If not it is advisable to begin preparing right away, because as renowned inventor Thomas A. Edison once observed:”Genius is one percent inspiration, and ninety-nine percent perspiration.” Find out what to do 48 hours before any test or exam, by clicking here.

Two graduates from Ponelopele Secondary School have been selected as Adero Programme Students in 2012. Picture Source: © Adero Education Foundation.

#NewsThursday: #NewsThursday saw us announcing some major news: our partnership with Oracle South Africa! For details of this partnership, please read our press release by clicking right here.

On #NewsThursday we also discussed TIME magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people on the planet. South Africa’s very own Oscar Pistorius was named as part of this list – visit this link to find out why Oscar Pistorius “…is the definition of global inspiration.”

#RecapFriday is the easiest way to keep track of the Adero experience – so that you can be continually inspired by the efforts of our students, mentors, volunteers, partners and heroes. Feel free to subscribe to our WordPress mailing list, so that you can receive the #RecapFriday digest every week.

We love hearing from you! Send us your comments using the feedback form below, or share your thoughts with us on Facebook and Twitter. Lastly, we wish you all a wonderful weekend ahead, and are looking forward to providing you with more educational news and inspiration next week.

As part of their ongoing commitment to education and community, Oracle South Africa and Adero have joined together to sponsor two students from the Ponelopele Oracle Secondary School to attend university.

The Oracle Academy currently supports over 1.5 million students in 95 countries. Picture Source: http://www.oracle.com

Since 1993, Oracle has worked to advance education with state-of-the art technology programs that prepare students for life and work in the 21^st century. Few subjects will open as many doors for students in the 21^st century as computer science/engineering and Oracle is uniquely positioned to help educators awaken and deepen students’ interest in these fields. Given this, and the fact that Oracle technologies are #1 in more than 50 product categories/industries, and Java is the #1 programming language with over 9 million developers worldwide, Oracle’s education programmes – through its flagship Oracle Academy programme – are designed to build on these natural synergies to prepare students for 21^st century careers.

The Oracle Academy supports colleges, universities, and secondary schools to integrate Oracle technology and curricula into computer science, engineering, and business programmes. The Oracle Academy currently supports over 1.5 million students in 95 countries. In addition, Oracle awards cash grants in support of computer science/STEM education globally, and champions select local initiatives to help advance education and enrich community life.

Two graduates from Ponelopele Secondary School have been selected as Adero Programme Students in 2012. Picture Source: © Adero Education Foundation.

In South Africa, one such endeavor is the Ponelopele Oracle Secondary School. Oracle South Africa, in conjunction with the Gauteng Education department, officially opened the school in Kaalfontein, Midrand, in 2007. Designed to uplift and provide a sustainable education institute to the local community, Ponelopele is the only secondary school in the area and accommodates 1,300 learners in 24 classrooms and a school hall which is unique to the area.

As a non-profit organisation, with the objective  of empowering the youth of developing countries by growing and nurturing them into the industry leaders and professionals of tomorrow that will in turn stimulate economic growth for their respective countries, Adero is proud to collaborate with Oracle by providing soft skills training, support and mentorship to these students.

We want to acknowledge Oracle for their commitment to education in South Africa and for working closely with Adero, and other organisations to make a notable difference in our community. Thank you.