A guest post from the president of She’s the First*{Bryn Mawr}, Amanda Kennedy:

Follow Amanda at @msamandakennedy

My love of stories bloomed from reading to writing them when I was in kindergarten: I wrote and illustrated a book about my family, scrawled in vibrant markers and simple sentences. It was the most elementary of stories, but it told a story nevertheless, and sparked a desire to write more, about flower friends, Jewel Rider (my girl power Super Hero I made up at age 7), and a play-by-play of my Aunt and Uncle’s wedding.

Every girl has a story. Here is one of the most beautiful things about She’s the First: the stories of girls around the world can be continued and brightened through the education that She’s the First sponsors.

So what better way to tell a story than through poetry? Join She’s the First “Voice Your Verse Campaign” by writing poetry about girls education on the She’s the First web site, and you might make your dreams come true by becoming a published author – She’s the First will compile an anthology of promising poems, “If the World Were My Classroom.” Of course, 100-percent of proceeds will directly sponsor girls’ education in Tanzania, Ethiopia, Nepal, and India. Anyone can submit!

Students should submit their poetry to Zinch.com to be entered to win a $500 scholarship! By promoting the importance of educating girls, one person with the best poem will receive the gift of giving back from She’s the First to fund your own education.

And what’s more –Chegg for Good will match that with a $500 scholarship for Jancy, a student in India who is very much part of She’s the First’s story and has an amazing story of her own to tell. A senior at the Shanti Bhavan School, Jancy was the judge for She’s the First’s Cupcake T-shirt Design contest and is well on her way to making a difference in her community.

Education is

A way of sitting on a
Wonderful star and

Lighting up the world.

I entered a poem for the Voice Your Verse campaign through Zinch. Now, it’s your turn. Help to make the stories of girls come to life.

Girls at the Ayak Anguei Girls’ Primary Boarding School in South Sudan

Here at She’s the First, our top priority is to help girls in developing countries become the first in their families to graduate. We’re all about creating a world with strong, well-educated female leaders that can not only win today’s fight against poverty and injustice, but also inspire future generations to do the same. But what about using education to support world peace?

One recent study suggests the benefits of education extend beyond what we already know (a delay in marriage & childbirth, decreased vulnerability to HIV/AIDs, higher earning potential, etc.) and may actually play a more important role than previously thought in the peacebuilding process in conflict-affected countries.

The report, put out by the Education and Emergencies and Post-Crisis Transition (EEPCT) program – a partnership between UNICEF, the Government of the Netherlands and the European Commission, discusses the fact that the majority of the world’s out-of-school children are located in conflict zones. We all know access to quality education is not always possible in the midst of conflict, but this study suggests more focus should be paid to how and when education is reintroducted in post-conflict societies:

“Education is deeply implicated in processes of socialization and identity formation, is vital for economic growth and individual and national advancement, and can act as an important vehicle for social cohesion and reconciliation…we need to ensure that it is delivered effectively and equitably and is a driver of peace rather than war.”

The report goes on to suggest that education play a more prominent role in all stages of the peacebuilding process, even throughout the conflict itself and especially in the immediate post-war period. Even more, it is argued that education has the power to serve as vehicle for change in society, providing children with values and attitudes that not only combat conflict, but also create a more productive and developed economy.

We told you that educating a girl could change the world!

Afghan Girls Punished for Elders’ Misdeeds
In Afghanistan, a harmful, although largely hidden, tradition punishes young girls for the misdeeds of their elders. The practice known as baad, or baadi, involves giving away a young woman, often a child, into slavery and forced marriage as “payment” for crimes a family elder committed, such as murder or adultery. Traded girls often endure cruel treatment and even torture. A 2010 United Nations report says the practice is “still pervasive” in rural areas. Read more here.

Another Darfur in Sudan?
The border of Sudan and South Sudan has been home to increasing violence and conflict. In a a recent report, Nicholas Kristof says people in the Nuba Mountains are living with bombings, ground attacks and sexual violence that closely resembles what happened in Darfur. The report claims that Sudanese uniformed soldiers are targeting Nubans, both for their darker skin and Christian faith, but also because many Nubans supported an armed uprising against decades of Sudanese misrule. Thousands of Nubans have fled the area to refugee camps. Read Kristof’s entire story here.

Egypt’s Presidential Election Date Delayed
The resignation of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak following last year’s protests and demonstrations left a vacancy in the president’s seat for the first time in 30 years. Although it has been over a year now, Egyptian election officials have yet to determine a date for the country’s first presidential election following Mubarak’s departure. The Supreme Council of Armed Forces, the ruling military power in Egypt, is now being pressured to bring the election by May 2012. Read the details here.

Jeronima, the first Starfish One by One mentor to have graduated from the program!

Jeronima, a former Starfish One by One student, is a lady of many firsts. She is the first in her family and the first in her entire community in rural Guatemala to graduate high school. She was a member of the first generation of Starfish One by One graduates. Now, she is the first Starfish “organic produce.” Jeronima is now the mentor for the newest group of adolescent girls in Starfish. The “Triumphant Ants” will have the support of Jeronima as their mentor for at least the next three years. She will be able to provide them with support and having been through the program herself, relate to what her students are going through. Felicitaciones Jeronima and we wish you the best of luck in your new Starfish role!

Jeronima with her mentorship group, the "Triumphant Ants"

A young boy's toes go unprotected as he carries river water back to his classroom in East Africa. Tony Karumba/AFP - Getty Images

As an elementary school student (okay, and as a high school student too), snow days were among the happiest days of the year.  I never thought twice about feeling anything other then joyful when school was cancelled because of weather. But for students in Ethiopia, climate has presented a huge educational obstacle to overcome. In January, UNICEF reported that over 450,000 young children in Ethiopia have seen their schooling opportunities threatened by natural disasters and conflict. It seems that droughts leave more than just the land barren; classrooms are taking a hit too. Torn between drought, flooding and windstorms, some regions in Ethiopia suffered a 50 percent dropout rate in just one month this summer. Unfortunately, these dropout rates have become the norm.

Each day that passes of a child not attending school increases the likelihood that the child will not return. To mitigate the devestation, several steps are being taken to get kids back in school before it’s too late. An article published by “IRIN” highlighted the effectiveness of school feeding programs and flexible calendar scheduling. The World Food Programme in partnership with other organizations is spearheading a “food for education” program. Serving a meal or snack during the school day has proven to be a great incentive for parents to send their children to school. Plus, the extra nourishment helps the young students focus on their studies, rather than on their rumbling stomach. A more flexible school calendar allows the children of pastoralists or nomadic populations to migrate when drought hits without the consequence of missing school. The school calendar would be designed so that class didn’t meet during the driest seasons.

Currently, the WFP is still seeking funds to provide assistance to children in Ethiopia in need of food and educational aid. To learn more about how drought can impact a child’s schooling, click here to watch a UNICEF video from 2007 when the same desperate circumstances arose in Ethiopia.

We’re thrilled Social Media Week gave us the 6pm, Feb 16th, slot inside the Social & Environmental Change Hub at Thomas Reuters, 3 Times Square! If you can’t join us at the crossroads of the world, then tune into our Livestream…you’ll just miss the cupcakes (thanks, @sprinkles!) And remember to tweet with hash tag #SMWMagic, because @thethinkcloud is matching mentions with a $1 donation, till we sponsor Eli’s final year of high school in Tanzania!

Special Introduction by ALEK WEK, @TheRealAlekWek

Elle magazine took a risk by featuring dark-skinned, Sudanese model, Alek Wek, on the cover of their November 1997 issue. However, the result was a monumental number of reader responses and letters-to-the-editor from both women and men who were ecstatic to see different standards of beauty in the fashion industry. Oprah later commented to Alek on her show, “If you’d been on the cover of a magazine when I was growing up, I would have had a different concept of who I was.”

Alek was born in Southern Sudan and raised as a part of the Dinka tribe. At fourteen, she was forced to flee to London to escape the civil war. Alek was soon discovered at a London street fair. She quickly rose to the top of the modeling industry. She has walked the runway for top fashion houses–Calvin Klein, Michael Kors, Christian Dior, Gucci, and Chanel–just to name a few.

Alek’s influence extends far beyond the fashion world and societal concepts of beauty. She has also served on the advisory board for the U.S. Committee for Refugees. She speaks in New York area schools to bring attention to the famine in Southern Sudan and to educate children on the importance of nourishment.

Moderated by EMILY BANKS, @emjbanks, of Mashable

Emily is responsible for assigning and editing news coverage, organizing editorial schedules and overseeing Mashable‘s editorial ethics guidelines and style guide. Previously, Emily was assistant news editor. She joined Mashable‘s New York team in October 2010 as copy editor. Emily also has experience working in newspaper, television and corporate communications. She has reported for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, community newspapers in Wisconsin and Georgia, and Georgia Public Broadcasting TV. She also worked for a small communications firm in Minneapolis with Fortune 500 clients. While in college she was the co-publisher and editor in chief of The Minnesota Daily, one of the largest student-run daily newspapers in the country.

ADAM BRAUN, @adambraun
Founder & Executive Director of Pencils of Promise, one of the world’s most impactful new nonprofits as recognized by Nobel peace prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Barbara Walters, Katie Couric, and active supporter Justin Bieber.

As a college student traveling across the globe, Adam asked a small boy begging on the streets of India what he wanted most in the world. The answer: A pencil. The promise that came in handing out that first pencil led to the sharing of thousands while backpacking through 50+ countries, learning from locals about the need for a nonprofit that built schools based on a model of community ownership and empowerment.

Pencils of Promise was founded in October 2008 with a mere $25 in hopes of building
one school in Laos. Today, that dream has manifested into more than 40 schools in Laos, Nicaragua and Guatemala and over 1 million education hours delivered. In creating the largest social media following out of any nonprofit started in the last four years, PoP has become a leader in social media engagement, sustainable development, youth empowerment and digital innovation.

Adam graduated magna cum laude and played varsity basketball for Brown University,
previously worked at leading consulting firm Bain & Company, and now spends half the year traveling on behalf of PoP and half the year at our global headquarters in New York City.

SUSAN MCPHERSON, @susanmcph1
Susan McPherson was just recently promoted to the first-ever Director of Global Marketing at Fenton, the nation’s leading public interest communications firm, where she focuses on corporate responsibility programs. She regularly writes and speaks on sustainability communications and the value of public/private partnerships.

She has more than 20 years experience in marketing, public relations, CSR communications and business development. Prior to joining Fenton, McPherson was vice president, CSR services at PR Newswire. Earlier roles with the company included assisting in development of the firm’s first bureaus in China (Beijing and Shanghai) and the launch of MediaSense, a media measurement tool. Prior to her career at PR Newswire, she worked in both the editorial and marketing departments of USA Today.

She serves on the board of Bpeace, an organization dedicated to assisting women in regions of conflict and post-conflict start businesses. She also is a member of Echoing Green’s Social Investment Council, Social Media Week’s New York Advisory Council and the New York Leadership team for 85Broads. She serves as an adviser to Plant A Fish, She’s the First, The Adventure Project and The OpEd Project.

MICHAEL RADPARVAR, @michaelrad
Michael Radparvar is the co-founder of Holstee a lifestyle goods company committed to design with with a conscience. At Holstee Mike is the chief storyteller, sharing the story of Holstee and their innovative approach to materials, design and production with the world. Mike’s unique approaches to press, marketing and outreach led to the viral spreading of the Holstee Manifesto, a message that has since been shared over 500,000 times and viewed over 60 million times online, and was prominently featured in this February’s issue of Inc magazine.

TAMMY TIBBETTS, @tammytibbetts
Tammy is the founder and president of She’s the First, a social-media driven and rapidly growing non-profit organization that sponsors girls’ education in developing world countries, so that they can be the first in their families to graduate from high school. In 2011, She’s the First sponsored 161 girls across eight countries, through creative campaigns that included tie-dye cupcake bake sales, the GIRLS WHO ROCK concert during Internet Week, and the efforts of college students who have started more than 20 She’s the First chapters across the country. Tammy graduated as a journalist from The College of New Jersey, and started her career as the youngest web editor in Hearst Digital Media. For the past 14 months, she has been the social media editor of Seventeen, which she led to have the fastest growing Twitter presence in the magazine industry in 2011, and will soon be leading She’s the First full-time.