February 2009 Update

First Latino Missions Conference

Rosalia and I attended the First Latino Missions Conference in Tampa, Florida. We were invited to lead a couple of workshops about education and technology.

It is very encouraging see how the Lord has been equipping key men and women at the Latino community in the United States, with the vision and passion to play a more relevant role until the end of the earth.

Engineers, medical doctors, educators, missionaries, pastors and leaders attended to this significant event which will become a tremendous motivation for the whole Latino community.

Around 10,000 Latino missionaries are serving the Lord all over the world, but the need and opportunities are way long higher. Events like this open the eyes of men and women to see how the Lord could use their experience, gifts, education and resources to bring glory to Him, and to make Him more known all over the nations.

Pablo is a gifted Software Engineer who attended the conference. He said wow, it is great to see how I could use my skills to serve the Lord.

Encouraging others to serve Him is a real honor that our Lord let us.


Course for content authors

As most of you know, Rosalia has been studying a Masters degree in Educational Technology. She just finished the subjects and is working in the thesis.

While serving different universities, seminaries and Bible institutes we sense the great need that courses and content authors have to receive more training to transition from face to face classes, to distance ones. These authors are producing materials to be used on distance (delivered online, through CDs, etc). Most of them have a lot of experience preparing classes to be taught face to face, but little or no experience in teaching on distance environments.

Rosalia just finished to produce a five weeks course to be taught online about the science called Instructional Design.

We are expecting to use this course with hundreds of professors and authors all over the Region.


Haiti STEP Digital Program

We have been partnering with CrossWorld in Haiti STEP Digital Program.

The present situation of the extension program is very time intensive for administration and the professors. The desire to take the education to the rural areas means that the professors go to the rural areas. The physical and political infrastructure are increasingly hindering this process.

MAF Learning Technologies project with STEP seminary is to move the paper-based correspondence courses into digital format allowing the student to take the courses using a computer, then corresponding to a mentor and sending in exams by email.

Courses are in Kreol and French languages allowing students to study and learn in their mother tongue.

After last year floods, all this Project was on hold until some weeks ago when again the Project advanced.

There are 12 courses being part of this digital program. Six courses are already done.

We are expecting to have the complete digital curriculum in the next two years.

That will impact Haiti.


Ministry vs. Support

One of the things we love to talk about is ministry.

There are thousands of opportunities to share the Gospel to individuals, communities, tribes, languages and nations.

Support in holistic terms is very key while we move forward developing projects to reach the lost, feed them and empower them to reach, feed and empower others.

As family and as ministry we need people committed in praying for these projects, and people committed to support these project with financial support.

It is true that our Lord has provided the funds to function for years, and it is true as well that relevant projects have been put on hold because our limited resources.

We want to encourage you to partner with us in the big challenge of using education and technology to help growing the church.

If you are already part of this vision, I encourage you to share this vision with others to make it theirs.