Specialties
Mona Foundation is a nonprofit (501)c. We find grassroots educational organizations that educate people of all backgrounds and raise the status of women and girls. We partner with the people doing the actual work of development in the field to help them fulfill their goals as they expand and evolve to meet the needs of their communities
We believe in the innate capacity and the inherent right of each individual, regardless of economic status, to be the protagonist of their own development. We select projects based on a thorough process that includes site visits and our field-tested selection criteria. Mona Foundation develops long-term relationships with locally operated organizations and provides multi-year funding (six years on average).
The projects that we support empower communities to implement their own development activities.Because change happens over a long time, this approach gives the organizations stability and the ability to plan for growth.
The effect of our strategy has been dramatic. Mona Foundation has helped several grass-roots initiatives grow from humble beginnings (such as tutorial schools under trees) to recognized educational institutions, including three that are now universities.
History
Established in 1999.
Mona Foundation was founded by a small group of people committed to making life better for all of our children. The Foundation supports grassroots educational initiatives that provide education to all children, increase opportunities for women and girls, and emphasize service to the community. Our goal is to eliminate global poverty and support community led transformation such that no child ever goes to bed hungry, is lost to preventable diseases, or is deprived of gift of education for lack of resources.
We believe that the keys to alleviating poverty are universal education, gender equality, and community building. We also believe that regardless of who they are or what their economic status is, people have the capacity to lead their lives and write their own future. Since 1999, Mona has awarded more than $8 million to 34 projects in 18 countries, providing access to quality education for more than 150,000 students annually.
Meet the Manager: Mahnaz A. J.
Mahnaz has a doctorate in educational leadership with a focus on educational technologies and human-software interface. She is a recognized expert in integration of technology across disciplines to enhance learning, and has authored several articles in scholarly publications.
She has held several positions including the Director of Readiness at Enterprise and Partners group, managing the planning and prioritization of training for 25,000 enterprise technical sales force. Currently Mahnaz is with Avanade, www.avanade.com, a high tech consultancy as the Vice President of Global Learning and Development.
Mahnaz is committed to, and has been involved in community service and social and economic development projects in the US, South and Central America and Africa for the past 15 years. She is one of the founders of Mona Foundation. She is also the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions, and is a frequent presenter at conferences focused on educational leadership.