Recent Babson College grad building a library in her native Ghana

WELLESLEY, Mass. — A recent Babson College graduate is helping change lives half a world away, thanks to a school project.

Samantha Azu studied economics at Babson College and graduated Saturday. Samantha was raised in Ghana and is creating a community library in a very rural section of the small west African country, where there aren’t a lot of free libraries. “I want to hand pick the books and make sure all the books are inspirational and empowering to teach the kids about their culture and different cultures. So I’m trying to just bring as much as I can from what I learned at Babson to these kids. So that’s really why I’m going to Ghana next week,” she said.

Samantha is making the library out of a shipping container. It will be on the property at a local junior/senior high school. In addition to books, the library will have computers, since many of the kids don’t have access to computers at home or even in school. “I’m just hoping it inspires these people that the situation they find themselves in life is not permanent and they can leave and also inspire those who have been blessed with so much to give back,” Samantha said.

The library will also educate the community about sustainability as the structure is made of a recycled shipping container and is powered by solar panels, so the school doesn’t have to bear additional costs of electricity.

Samantha plans to open the library at the end of June. The project will cost about 3-thousand dollars and she’s raised money through a crowdfunding page at Babson College.

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