Founding President – Dr. Aseniah Wallace visited eSwatini, Africa,
on a church mission trip in 2013 and was touched so deeply by the
experience that her life was never the same. The experience made it
difficult for her to walk away without doing something to help.
Several gifted orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC) shared with
Dr. Wallace their dreams of becoming doctors and healthcare
professionals. These dreams would be impossible to achieve without
assistance in gaining access to higher education in health care.
After conducting a year of research, the idea of empowering victims
of extreme health conditions to pursue healthcare careers and
returning to their native region as health professionals for better
global health, evolved into a three-fold solution. The primary
purpose for forming Building International Bridges to Higher
Education (BIBHE) became to improve health conditions by equipping
gifted OVC with skills to become doctors, nurses, and other
certified health professionals. The ultimate aim of helping them to
achieve their personal dreams, and improving health conditions
within their families and communities is the contribution to better
global health.
Dr. Wallace established Building International Bridges to Higher
Education (BIBHE) in June 2014. BIBHE is an advocacy organization
committed to creating educational opportunities for OVC leading to
career pathways in healthcare and medicine. As a nonprofit charity
organization, all proceeds of BIBHE are tax-deductible.
To achieve better global health and improve extreme health conditions through healthcare education and empowerment of victims from indigent populations.
Talent endures where solutions can emerge independent of economic status.
To offer OVC pathways to higher education for careers in healthcare through partnerships with foundations, local and international families, government and community organizations, secondary schools, college preparatory high schools, colleges, and universities.
Building International Bridges to Higher Education (BIBHE) offers
orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC) educational opportunities
leading to career pathways in healthcare and medicine. BIBHE
supports public awareness campaigns regarding global health issues.
An example: the pandemic of HIV/AIDS and active tuberculosis, which
has overwhelmed the healthcare system in eSwatini, Africa.
Program participants are identified and recruited from schools and
academies in the region. Their academic progress is monitored and
assessed using standard aptitude testing tools as bench markers of
satisfactory academic progress. Upon completing high school and
meeting college requirements for admission, BIBHE participants
choose a course of study that will track them into a health career
pathway that best suits their academic potential and interest.
Building International Bridges to Higher Education networks with
college/universities and foundations to develop educational and
financial resources to enable program participants to obtain a
quality education. Participants are required by program contract to
return and work in their native homelands as health care
professionals. Students must render 3 to 5 years of service in their
native region upon graduation.
Goal 1 – Uphold the commitment of the Minister of
Education goal in eSwatini to educate girls.
Goal 2 – Expand the program to include male and female
students who wish to pursue any career in healthcare & other areas
of STEM. New! Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Mathematics.
Goal 3 – Help reduce healthcare workforce deficit to
meet the World Health Organization's recommendation of 2.3
professional health workers per 1,000 people in eSwatini; and
increase economic empowerment.
Goal 4 – Establish a return and retention program upon
completion of education.
President/Chair of Board: Aseniah Wallace, DHA, MBA, BS,
Background includes: 30-years of executive management experience at
Digital Equipment/Compaq, Polaroid, and Sun Microsystems
corporations. Also worked as Interim Campus Director/Core
faculty/Academic advisor for three-years: and currently teach as
adjunct professor of Healthcare Administration at Webster University
for eight years.
Secretary: Carolyn Hickman-Williams, ABD, retired Director of
Human Resources Coastal Carolina University.
Treasurer: Paula Hildebrand, Finance/Bookkeeping
Professional.
Chief of Medical Staff/Education Officer: Dr. James Adamson,
MD, retired and well-respected community physician for over
30-years. (Internal Medicine practice owner).
Executive Program Director of the New! STEM project:
Carol Benjamin is a missionary who lived in eSwatini for 7 years,
creating and implementing programs for high school students there.
She has a passion for helping disadvantaged kids break free from
hopelessness and poverty.
Carol earned an MBA from Purdue University and a Certificate in
Biblical Studies from Trinity University in Chicago. She enjoyed a
30-year career in IT/Finance at GE Healthcare before she became a
full-time missionary. She now serves the Lord in Wisconsin with her
husband Jack, children and grandchildren.
Organizational Development/Parliamentary Procedure: Robert N.
Wallace III - President of Wallace Success International,
Organizational Development Consultant, National Training Laboratory
Institute for Applied Behavioral Science (NTL) member, Emotional
Intelligence Human Relations Center Board Member, and Adjunct
Professor at Webster University.
Medical Education Advisor: Dr. Dode Washington, MD, retired and well-respected OBGYN practice owner (Emeritus officer).
Agency-Consultant/Officer: Curtina Simmons (ABD), Masters in Social Work – University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill, retired professor for Johnson C. Smith University - Honorary Memorial Officer - (February 20, 1941 – December 21, 2018)
Advance Technology Management Company
Children’s Cup Corporation
Hotchkiss High School Academy
NCNW - Greater Boston Area
For more information email atwallace@bibhesg-bibhe.org or call 843-333-3515
Founding President Dr. Aseniah Wallace
