The  Adjara Community Policing Initiative (ACPI)  fosters closer cooperation in 10 rural communities of the Adjara region, with particular focus on cooperation among religious groups and between the community and local police departments. The core of the program  supports building and institutionalizing positive dialogue, consultation, and joint problem solving between local police and rural communities, including religious communities and minorities. The program seeks to overcome existing communication challenges within communities and between communities and the police. Representatives of the community include school students, administration, parents and teachers, representatives of local self-government, sport groups, and religious and community leaders. 

ACPI utilizes school and community interventions to lead greater engagement of police with the members of selected communities of Adjara, hence, the two components, legal socialization in schools and building police-community relations, are key program areas of the initiative. Providing police with training and support to incorporate and improve their own personal and professional capacity to accomplish these community policing objectives are key. Activities build from classroom based components (building trust and relationship between students and police) and extend out to community based activities.

ACPI is funded by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.

USAID-funded Applied Civic Education and Teacher Training Program (ACETT) was implemented by PH International in partnership with the Centre for Training and Consultancy (CTC) and 11 regional partner NGOs from 2010 - 2014. The program was also supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia.

ACETT worked to improve the quality and scope of school-based civic education as a means to positively influence the knowledge, attitudes and behaviors of youth (and, through their example, those of the broader community) as active participants in Georgia’s democratic society. ACETT involved a number of program areas, including curriculum development, teacher training, encouraging and promoting student civic involvement, and strengthening recognition of the importance of civics education. The program reached out to 740 schools, 30% of all schools in Georgia. Successes achieved by the program include the following:

-        development of 50-hour accredited training course for civics teachers titled “Teaching Democratic Citizenship”;

-        passing 813 civics teachers from partner schools through this accredited course and conducting workshops for 736 school principals about the importance of school-based civic education;

-        creating and supporting a National Forum of Civics Teachers, which now brings together more than 500 teachers from all regions of Georgia. Organization aims to advance civics teachers’ professional development, promote experience-sharing among teachers through different activities, which include: trainings and master-classes by American and Georgian experts, civics teacher roundtables to discuss critical professional issues, regional conferences and meetings of civics teachers to share experiences, open lessons in civics and organization of the National Annual Fair-Conference of Civics Teachers.

-       presenting a Best Civics Teachers of the Year Award annually starting from 2012;

-        development of the four sets of supplemental civics textbooks, which were introduced to 740 schools in Georgia. Translation of these materials into Azeri and Armenian for use in schools teaching in these languages;

-        organizing summer civics camps for 1,115 students and teachers; conducting civics integration camps for 200 Georgian and ethnic minority youth to facilitate implementation of joint initiatives;

-        developing a manual for school civics clubs and helping to establish over 500 school-based civics clubs in which students work with partners to resolve the critical issues of their schools and communities;

-        awarding the most successful school-based civics clubs with audio-visual equipment that can be  used to enhance their activities;

-        funding and supporting 555 mini-grant projects that promote civic participation by students and teachers; involving local state and private organizations as contributors in these projects;

-        training 711 young leaders and 53 teachers in the use of social media for civic engagement;

-        training 170 students (and teachers) in debates and public speaking, who then have trained the peers in their respective schools and regions;

-        organizing youth forums with participation of more than 3000 students nationwide to promote involvement of youth in local decision-making processes;

-        and creating a civics and citizenship web portal www.civics.ge which brings together resources and news for about civic education and civic engagement for youth, their teachers and parents; 

Final external evaluation of the program, through which 1,300 respondents were surveyed nationwide, showed that ACETT program achieved its goals successfully. This survey confirmed students have gained important knowledge and practices, through their participation in ACETT program, which are essential for democratic citizenship.

• Microsoft Translator service will integrate the Georgian language into its search capacity https://translator.microsoft.com.
• Microsoft programs (such as MS office, skype, etc), as well as third party web and mobile applications will accessible in the Georgian language.

The Community Connections program in Georgia was administered by PH International and funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Community Connections promoted public diplomacy, economic growth and the development of civil society in Georgia and Eurasia through an exchange of experiences, culture and values among program participants, American families, host businesses and local communities. A practical internship program that combined seminars, workshops, site visits, and meetings with American professionals with hands-on practical internships, Community Connections provided participants with an experience lasting three to five weeks in the United States and with an American host family experience.

The Community Connections program:

• Provided participants with professional training and exposure to the day-to-day functioning of a free market system
• Encouraged public-private partnerships in Georgia by including private sector and government participants on US visits
• Created links between US and Georgian regions and communities

Initiative for Empowering Local Communities in Georgia’ Project

PH International leads a multi-country, multi-faceted effort to reduce the risks of radicalization of vulnerable residents of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Macedonia. PH International and its key partners in each country, the Georgian Center for Strategy  and Development (GCSD) in Georgia, the Center for Economic and Social Development (CESD) in Azerbaijan, and Moonshot CVE in Macedonia are implementing this effort through a comprehensive online and offline campaign for both countering the messaging of international terrorist and violent extremist organizations in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Macedonia while acting to prevent the risks of extremist messaging through activities targeting drivers that contribute to these risks, particularly among young people. Building local capacity to sustain this effort is key to the overall success of the project. As part of the project a special training curriculum will be developed that will be used in Georgia and Azerbaijan to train community members, including influencers on what P/CVE is and how and why it is important to counter the messaging being received from violent extremist organizations. 

The dynamics of domestic violence in eastern Europe are essentially the same as in the United States. What does differ dramatically between these two cases however is the social awareness of the problem and the tools available to prevent and defend against acts of domestic violence. At the turn of the millenium, this problem in the former Soviet Union was aggravated by inherited cultural traditions, social structures and norms of behavior which have historically tolerated domestic violence. In 1998, Project Harmony received a grant from the United States State Department to administer "The Domestic Violence Community Partnership Program." This innovative two-year program brought together coalitions of domestic violence prevention and response experts from the United States, Russia, and Ukraine - later expanding to Georgia -  to share strategies and develop community-based tools for increasing awareness of this problem, and protecting women in culturally relevant and law enforcement-supported ways. Participants learned about collaborative models in the U.S. establishing domestic violence community partnerships that were producing measurable and positive results. Working linkages between police, victim advocate groups, prosecutors, judges, health care professionals, family counselors and schools are producing an effective coalition of community based services to attack the systemic issues of domestic violence.

The program initially focused on Petrozavodsk and Volgograd in Russia, and in Odesa and Lviv in Ukraine. Based on the success of the first two-year initiative, Project Harmony received another grant in 1999 to continue the program for an additional two years and to extend the locations to include the cities of Irkutsk in the Far East of Russia, Uzhgorod in Ukraine, and Tbilisi in Georgia.

2014-2016 English Language through Civic Education (ELCE II) Program

PH International (PH) is pleased to have been awarded the 2014-2016 English Language through Civic under the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Education and Cultural Affair’s (ECA) Programming Initiative. PH will be the sole implementer of the U.S. funded ELCE II program.

The goal of 2014 – 2016 English Language through Civic Education (ELCE II) program is to improve English language teaching and learning in Georgian schools in order to support Euro-Atlantic integration, promote Western democratic values, improve students’ capacity for higher and continuing education, and increase marketable job skills among Georgian youth. . The direct beneficiaries of this program in Cycle 1 of Program Implementation are Georgian teachers of English for grades 1 through 12 and the students they teach. This project represents a continuation in U.S. Embassy/PAS’s use of English language instruction and acquisition programs as a means to promote Western and U.S. values among a new generation of Georgian pupils.   In the first phase of the English Language through Civic Education program, PH, in partnership with Georgetown University and the English Teachers Association in Georgia (ETAG), worked with the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi and MES to develop a core training program for practicing English teachers and over two years increased the capacity of 378 Georgian English teachers in seven regions. ELCE brought in American English Language Teacher Trainers (ELTTs) who worked with a core set of Georgian English teachers in each region on an intensive program to develop content based, student focused teaching skills that use civic and cultural themes as a means of mobilizing student engagement and participation in English language learning. These trained teachers serve as models for their colleagues and 30 of the best received additional training in the U.S. as peer teacher trainers under the follow-on Intensive Course for Teachers of English (ICTE) program, which also gave 20 English teachers that had not worked with ELTTs a “jump start” to using the ELCE curriculum through an intensive teacher training summer camp.  

The objectives of the current program are:

• To enable Georgian English language teachers in four additional regions (Tbilisi, Samtskhe-Javakheti, Mtskheta Mtianeti,  and Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti) of Georgia to demonstrate enhanced skills and improved classroom instruction for English language acquisition and civic education through English language.
• In coordination with PAS and MES, to increase access of English teachers and classes to expanded materials and resources that complement the national curriculum, support language acquisition skills, and introduce Western and U.S. information, culture and concepts at each grade level.

The PH Team has developed a program that will achieve these objectives through a focus on following five key results:

1. A total 120 Georgian English teachers (80 practicing teachers working with children grades 1-12 and 40 pre-service teachers) graduate from the ELCE training program in Tbilisi and Samtskhe-Javakheti with advanced skills in content and delivery;
2. 20 practicing teachers from Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti and Mtskheta-Mtianeti increase capacity to deliver student-centered and content focused English language instruction through civic education;
3. At least 20 new supplemental handouts, lesson plans, multi-media presentations or other material developed by Georgian teachers are nominated by their peers to be considered in semi-annual prize competitions.
4. 80 schools have expanded equipment base to enrich English language learning experience in listening, reading , writing and speaking
5. Two universities have expanded materials and approaches that can be used to better prepare new English teachers for learner-centered and content-focused language acquisition.

ELCE II Program Consists of four program components:

1. Teacher Training Coaching and Advising
2. Ongoing expansion of supplemental materials and teaching resources
3. Distribution of equipment to enrich learning
4. Promotion of new approaches and lessons learned to broader educational community.

The Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX) program is one of the Department of State's longest lasting programs providing an opportunity for international high school students to spend a year in the United States, living with host families and attending American high schools.

The goal of Georgia CALLS is to prevent/reduce recurrence of juvenile delinquency and strengthen a fundamental shift within the police, courts, and communities toward restorative justice elements in the Republic of Georgia. Although Georgia has made remarkable progress in adopting policies that bring it closer to international practices in juvenile justice, there are also practices in the country that are founded in authoritative approaches with the potential to undermine restorative justice approaches starting up and generally alienate youth, leaving them more vulnerable to negative influences. As the name indicates, the Georgia Community Action and Linkages for Legal Socialization program focuses on building joint effort of government, communities, local NGOs, private sector and the international community for strong prevention programs and in support for the expansion of alternative justice approaches. Georgia CALLS will encourage schools and community groups to plan for and adopt new programs that reduce delinquency, providing access to training and materials that support those activities. Programs will cultivate police as positive influences in the lives of youth and reinforce community policing. Other components will strengthen the expansion of the Government’s pilot Diversion and Mediation program for juveniles throughout the country.

Georgia CALLS is funded by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.

The Georgian Legal Socialization Program (GLSP), implemented by PH International and funded by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), began in 2008, in partnership with The Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia and The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia. The program sought to increase public safety, juvenile crime prevention and civil society development through raising the youth awareness in juvenile justice matters, building/ promoting trust among the students, teachers and law enforcement officers, and the introduction and promotion of principles of restorative justice. 

The program included a range of components. Legal Culture Classes brought together police officers and civic education teachers in the classroom in approximately 100 public schools in 6 regions throughout Georgia, to jointly conduct specialized 7th and 9th grade GLSP curriculum. The Social Media in Schools (SMS) component taught youth basic social media skills using PH's SMS curriculum, allowing the students to transform the knowledge acquired during the classes into practical actions for juvenile crime prevention though use of social media. A third school-based component, Peer Clubs of Legal Education, encouraged a peer education approach and project-based activities. Curriculum were translated to Azeri and Armenian languages for use in schools in minority regions.

In addition to these school components, GLSP played a significant role in introducing the concepts of restorative justice to Georgia, leading to a Juvenile Diversion and Mediation Program introduced by the Ministry of Justice of Georgia in 2010. GLSP organized trainings for representatives of governmental institutions and mediators involved in the Diversion and Mediation Program and facilitated the sharing of international experience by professional exchanges to the US and Armenia as well as by bringing foreign experts to Georgia. 
 

The Georgian Police as Leaders in Athletics for Youth (GE-PLAY) Basketball program is funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Education and Cultural Affair’s under the SportsUnited International Sports Programming Initiative, and implemented by PH International. The program will take place from September 2014 to December 2015.

The goal of the GE-PLAY Basketball program is to inspire and help officials and community groups in Georgia to adopt policies and approaches that promote development of community-based youth sports programs. Building on PH’s work in the GE CALLS program, youth sports initiatives will draw upon local police and others as resources to provide positive opportunities for youth aged 7-17 to practice leadership, responsibility, teamwork, healthy living and self-discipline.

PH will conduct a two-way sports and cultural exchange with participants (adults and youth) from Georgia and the United States. In early 2015, ten (10) officials and youth practitioners from Georgia will visit the U.S. and be introduced to approaches and options for community-based youth sports programming, with special emphasis on programs models that bring youth and police together. Exchange participants will return home, to develop and execute action plans resulting in 10-15 community-based sports initiatives that can serve as pilot and demonstration programs for a broader effort in the future. In early summer 2015, sixteen (16) Americans, including one boys and one girls basketball team, coaches, and police officers involved in sports programming will visit Georgia to provide added technical assistance, conduct workshops, and clinics and momentum for the programs that are being developed.

ECA SportsUnited: http://eca.state.gov/programs-initiatives/sports-diplomacy

International Exchange Alumni: https://alumni.state.gov/

Intensive Course for Teachers of English (ICTE II) Program, funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Education and Cultural Affair’s (ECA) Programming, U.S. Embassy in Georgia,  aims to build local capacity and sustainability on the foundation begun in ICTE I with a focus on further enhancing quality teaching and learning in Georgian schools by ensuring professional knowledge of English language teachers; establishing high performance standards and raising the professional status of teachers; expanding the existing Georgian TOT capacity; and supporting expert Georgian teachers to now take the lead as expert trainers and mentors for Georgian teachers of English language.

PH International (PH) has partnered with World Learning’s School for International Training Graduate Institute (SIT)) to provide specialized training for Georgian school teachers of English, enhancing their theoretical and practical knowledge and effecting a deep understanding of issues related to the teaching of English as a foreign language and relationships between the language and western culture and values. The PH-SIT Team will draw upon teacher training materials and approaches used in ICTE I and the ELCE program.

A Teacher Training Summer Camp (TTSC) in Georgia will condense ELCE professional development into a 50 hour intensive course, give 20 less experienced Georgian English teachers a week of specialized training in modern learner-centered teaching techniques for language learning, supplementary lessons and materials that reinforce English language acquisition through content on American and western culture and civic values, and offer applied learning opportunities with students in the English language summer camp.

A Training of Trainers Summer Institute (TOTSI) in the United States will develop 22 experienced ELCE I, ELCE II, Access and ICTE I’s TTSC teachers as peer trainers that can train other teachers in modern learner centered teaching techniques combined with English language and cultural instruction. Finally, mentoring and support during the follow-on period will use social media, networking, and a series of incentive opportunities to encourage and challenge participants to fulfill commitments to apply learning and expand the impact of ICTE II. 

A one-year pilot program, Internet Community Development in the Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia), a program of US State Department, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, was designed to promote the use of the Internet as a democracy-building and community organizing tool for professionals in the Southern Caucasus. The program fostered the development of business support, discussion on refugee issues, and assistance to internally displaced persons. The training and outreach activities of the program built the local capacity of professionals in these fields to use and create multi-language online resources such as online newsletters, discussions lists, interactive websites, web chats, and teleconferences. Experience from the pilot program was integrated into the core of the School Connectivity Programs.

This program provided youth exchanges for American teenage groups to Tbilisi and for Georgian teens associated with the Tbilisi Pioneer Palace to the U.S.

• Juvenile delinquency is decreased as youth gain a greater understanding and respect for the rule of law, legal issues, law enforcement and criminal investigation.
• Capacity of police is increased to implement effective community policing initiatives.
• Greater community awareness of legal issues are introduced addressing trafficking, domestic violence, bullying, cyber security and cybercrime.

​SCOPE is funded by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs.

The Semester Study Program brought teenagers from Russia, Georgia, Ukraine and Belarus to the United States for a semester of study in American high schools. Between 50 and 100 15-18 year old high school students each year participated in the program, hosted by families across breadth of the U.S. Participants without exception were bery thankful to PH, the USIA's Freedom Support Act program, and most of all their host families for their experience. Follow-up surveys offered statements such as:

"When I got home, I had lots of ideas of things I wanted to do - like starting a student government, clubs for sports, and helping elderly people"

"We are going to try to start something here in Tomsk - going to orphanages and helping kids."

“Tech4Good” is a Microsoft’s initiative to empower different organizations worldwide to better serve their communities. In 2017, PH International was selected in Georgia to implement the project “Georgian NGOs to Better Serve their Communities”. The goal of the project is to introduce the world-class solutions and technology programs, that would be offered to Georgian NGOs to support their efforts in better serving their communities. Due to its extensive NGO network nationwide, PH International is mobilizing and engaging different local NGOs and media representatives in the activities of the project – providing them with the information and guidance on how they can get registered in order to obtain the Microsoft product donations and discounts; special emphasis is given to Microsoft’s cloud technologies, such as Office 365 & Azure.

• To enhance entrepreneurship development, capacity-building of youth-led small enterprises through innovative forms of access to finance, knowledge and expertise.
• To increase employability of young people by offering relevant training, improved financial capabilities, new forms of practical on-the-job training opportunities and encouraging youth-friendly corporate practices.
• To create discourse contributing to youth economic empowerment through a nationwide media campaign as well as support to youth-led enterprise networks and connecting them to similar networks internationally.

• Development of open-source Youth Enterprises Training Manual, non-formal educational module with session guides, instructions and handouts. 600 young people from 20 regions of Georgia will take part in the Youth Enterprise two-stage Training Program, offered by MFO Crystal Branch Offices in 20 locations of Georgia. As a result, 30 youth led start-up enterprises will be financed and supported.
• Development of Employers Guide to Internship and Youth Friendly Practices tailored for the selected 20 companies. The guide will provide methods and tools for constructing effective on-the-job training programs, leading to sustainable employment of youth. 400 young people will undertake internship in selected companies.
• Creation of http://crystalcrowd.ge/en/more/video-academy, providing access to online entrepreneurial resources, employment advises access to finances and engagement opportunities with local and international networks.