Introduction
Despite progressive legal framework, Azerbaijani women face many obstacles accessing educational opportunities. According to UNDP (2007), stereotypical gender attitudes in education reveal that boys are not only given more opportunities in education, but also they receive higher and better education. When it comes to pursuing educational goals in Azerbaijan, while financial difficulties may affect both genders, girls are viewed as being more vulnerable to both physical and cultural dangers, susceptible to gender stereotypes, and subject to early marriages. The SGSP is named after Shahla Garayeva (1962-2018), a renowned pedagogue, professor of English language and American literature as well as one of the most talented teachers. Shahla lost her life to cancer in April 2018 after a hard-fought battle. Hundreds of her students have known Shahla as a strong spirit, mother figure, passionate educator and most importantly, a friend. Throughout her teaching career, Shahla has helped hundreds of students from diverse backgrounds reach their educational and career goals. The funds collected from this campaign will go towards educating women like Shahla who are fighting their way to the top through education in Azerbaijan.
Program Implementation
The SGSP is a memorial crowdfunding project. Funds collected through SGSP will be used to meet the educational needs of underrepresented women from Azerbaijan with a demonstrated need. Recipient(s) of the SGSP will be determined through an application process. Eligibility requirements to receive SGSP funds: (1) be a resident of Azerbaijan; (2) be a woman from an underrepresented background(s) (e.g. low-income family, single-parent household, ethnic minority, etc.); (3) have a demonstrated need for covering educational expenses at secondary or tertiary level of education. The recipient(s) of the SGSP will be selected by the board that will be established as a result of the crowdfunding campaign and will also include the SGSP team.
Upon selection, the funds will be transferred to the educational institution of the recipient(s). We aim to award six scholarships in the amount of $700 (totaling $4200, plus transfer fees). If we exceed the initial threshold of $5,000 allocated for scholarships, individual amount of scholarships will be reconsidered accordingly. By expanding women’s access to educational opportunities, we will be able to open up doors to future careers, financial stability in the same way Shahla helped her students. Moreover, we will train minimum six young trainers who will become advocates of women empowerment and raise awareness about domestic violence.
As a result of this initiative we expect to increase accessibility, and affordability of higher education to talented and motivated females who otherwise would have to delay or forego higher education altogether. The selected recipients of the SGSP will:
- receive financial support towards their tuition fee;
- enhance their knowledge on gender equality to actively participate in the community life;
- develop their leadership and communication skills through the SGSP training sessions;
- open up doors to future careers, financial stability;
- gain competences to become trainers and raise awareness regarding domestic violence.
- NOTE: Considering the current situation in Azerbaijan, we would like to give priority during the selection process to the victims (young women) who had to bare the hard consequences of the war that erupted on September 27, 2020 between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
Layihə haqqında
Şəhla Qarayeva Təqaüd Proqramı (ŞQTP) Azərbaycandan olan az imkanlı və təhsilə çıxışı məhdud olan qadınların təhsil imkanlarının genişləndirilməsi üçün yaradılıb. ŞQTP həyatını təhsilə həsr etmiş, məşhur pedaqoq və təbələrin dostu olan Şəhla Qarayevanın (1962-2018) adını daşıyır. Şəhla müəllimə 2018-ci ilin aprel ayında xərçənglə uzun mübarizədən sonra öz həyatını itirdi. Bu proqram vasitəsilə onun tələbələri, yaxınları, eləcə də Şəhla müəlliməni uzaqdan-yaxından tanımış hər bir şəxs onun əziz xatirəsini yad edir və Azərbaycanda güclü qadınların gələcək nəslinin yetişməsinə kömək edir.
Azərbaycanda qızların təhsili ilə bağlı kifayət qədər irəliləmiş hüquqi bazanın olmasına baxmayaraq, qadınların təhsilə çıxışında maneələr mövcuddur. BMT İnkişaf Proqramının (2017) hesabatına əsasən, gender stereotiplərin mövcudluğu, erkən nikahlar eləcə də qadınların liderlik mövqelərində təmsilçiliyinin arzu olunan səviyyədə olmaması bu maneələrdən sadəcə bəziləridir. ŞQTP nəticəsində toplanılan məbləğ ($5000) təhsil xərclərinin qarşılanması məqsədilə açıq müsabiqə yolu ilə seçilmiş altı nəfər qız şagird/abituriyent/tələbəyə (6 x $700, köçürmə və digər əlaqədar xərclər) təltif olunacaq. Proqram haqqında daha geniş məlumat almaq üçün bizim vebsaytımıza müraciət edə bilərsiniz.
ŞQTP qaliblərinin təqaüd barədə təəssüratları ilə videodan tanış ola bilərsiniz:
(English version follows below)
The Awardees (2019-2021)
Since 2019, we have awarded 10 scholarships to young women from Azerbaijan studying towards their degrees in the fields ranging from geography, IT, oil engineering, philology to physical education (volleyball), teacher education (physics), and translation studies. To learn more about the SGSP awardees, please visit our website.
(EN), Illik Hesabat - 2019 (AZ), Annual Report 2020 (EN), Illik Hesabat - 2020 (AZ)
Project Team
The SGSP is managed by a group of young professionals and doctoral students living in different parts of the world. For more information on the project team, visit our website.
About Shahla Garayeva
Shahla Garayeva spent most of her career as a professor at the Baku State University (BSU). Since 1993, she worked as a senior lecturer of English language and American Literature for many years at the Faculty of International Relations and International Law at the BSU. She received her B.A in Philology (English Language and American Literature) at Azerbaijan University of Languages in 1987, M.A. at Bilkent University (Ankara, Turkey) in 2001. She worked as a chief of the language laboratory at the BSU from 1993 to 1995.
During 1995-2008, she served as a senior teacher at the Foreign Language Department at the Faculty of International Law and International Relations at the BSU. From 2001 to 2006, she was the evaluator in the American Studies Center at the BSU, evaluator for the CEP (Civic Education Project) 2003-2005, translator-editor for the Journal of History and its Problems 2002-2007 and expert on writing and revising tests at State University Entrance Exam Commission (abbr. "TQDK") between 2004-2008.
Due to health complications, she was not able to defend her PhD thesis titled “Evaluation of new and old English textbooks: Writing a textbook for the faculties of IL and IR”. Thanks to the support from her family, students and nurses, finally in 2016, she was able to defend her work that was prepared 6 years ago at the Academy of Sciences in Azerbaijan.
Shahla was an active participant of several teacher training programs, national and international conferences in different parts of the world (UK, Turkey, Germany, America, Kyrgyzstan, France). She had always been supportive of sending students to study abroad programs and had done her best for them in this field. Most of her students now are well-known people, people who hold high positions in government agencies, ambassadors, diplomats and other offices.
Our Partner
Rondine International Peace Lab (RIPL) is the network of Rondine Cittadella della Pace alumni. It is a growing network, currently composed of 200 alumni from 25 countries around the world, who have been working for years to promote conflict transformation through the Rondine method. RIPL has as its main power in the growing international network of professionals who have undergone a personal and professional transformation and have the potential of becoming leaders who are eager to change the world. In its values, mutual trust and professional knowledge are the fundamental elements of RIPL. RIPL members - former enemies become friends through the Rondine process - feel and live any kind of conflicts as if it were theirs: therefore, they are ready to intervene with an innovative approach in any context. RIPL, highly promotes women participation not only in the peace processes, but also in the community life by educating and giving them necessary instruments. It considers gender equality as an indispensable requirement for the development of the society.
