The MMMF TRACER STUDY

Preliminary results of a tracer study of former Margaret McNamara Memorial Fund (MMMF) recipients were recently presented by Hada Zaidan to the MMMF Board.

The tracer study evaluates the effectiveness of MMMF in improving the lives of women and children in developing countries by providing 134 scholarships for women to study in the United States, Canada, or South Africa since 1983. 

The Board was encouraged by initial results and authorized the working group, composed of Hada Zaidan, Andree Wynkoop, and Sarah Brau, to expand efforts to reach former recipients and establish a virtual community for enhanced communication and cooperation.  

PRELIMINARY RESULTS

Return to Home Country: it is interesting to note that in the preliminary results, three quarters of the recipients returned to their home country at the end of their studies and 85% of them are still in their home countries now. 

Field of Work

Nearly half of the respondents were in Education or education-related fields; most are working in an educational setting such as a school, university or educational institute. The rest were equally divided between Women’s Ministries and Government, Policy and Management such as NGOs, Civil Society or not-for-profit organizations.  

Main Responsibilities

Two thirds of the recipients have responsibilities mainly in Education. Management and Information/Knowledge dissemination is a close second. Project Management, Women’s Issues and Policy Formulation are not far behind. 

Impact on Women and Children

Almost every respondent said that their work impacts the status of women and children in their communities mostly through education projects targeting literacy classes for both women and children and farm families and indigenous communities. Another area was health education for children and reproductive health education for women, especially for self examination and screening programs for breast cancer. One was working on empowering women and “making them aware of their invaluable role in society and helping to give them options in life other than being wives and mothers”.   

Challenges

Half of the respondents said that the biggest issue/problem obstructing their career path was lack of funds and the second largest challenge was family responsibilities.

Vision for the Future:

The most exciting part of this study is the possibility it presents for tapping into this group of women who are/will be leaders in their respective communities and could possibly open up opportunities for the MMMF Overseas Project in these countries.

Building a relationship with past recipients will give the MMMF a treasure trove of stories about these remarkable women. Their struggles, successes and achievements are worth recounting and celebrating.  

Sarah Brau and Hada Zaidan