WriteOn! Albania

Shown here are student writing sessions and our first judging.

Begun years ago by PCVs in Georgia, WO! is a creative writing competition with both national and international competitions (https://writeonalbania.wixsite.com/home). The national competitions run January - February in participating countries. During this two month period, Albania's PCVs proctor 60 minute writing sessions for grades 6-12 at schools around the country. We focus our efforts on PCV sites since those are typically underserved communities, though we included Tirana a little this year. I had/have two roles in this project. Most significantly, I am the WO! National Coordinator for Albania. Secondly, I proctored writing sessions.

As the National Coordinator, I organize Albania's competition and the subsequent judging. Preparation for 2026 began last September. After the prompts release on January 7, PCVs held their writing session(s). SIDI Education also generously donated book prizes for the winners (thank you!). Unfortunately, preparation was halted as I was sick and hospitalized with pneumonia for most of February. By March 5, we had judged 1,078 submissions from 42 schools at 32 different sites. With so many entries, judging took two days. Albania's WO! program advanced 21 entries to the International Competition.

In addition to organizing the program, I proctored writing sessions at 4 schools. Students from my site's school participated for the first time ever. My sixth grade had been practicing faithfully since September, and their writing and English skills significantly improved. I have high hopes for them next year. Two schools from the nearby town also asked me to proctor. Lastly, I proctored a group writing session in Tirana. Because the competition is open to all Albanian students, we felt like Tirana should be included, but limitations were necessary. First, there is no PCV in Tirana. The three of us on the leadership team - the International Coordinator, the Social Media Coordinator, and I - traveled to Tirana the day before judging to proctor at 3 separate sessions. It was an endeavor. Second, we were selective with participants. Our PCV-led program would never be able to support all interested Tirana students. Therefore, we allowed only 4 schools, each capped to 15 participating students. Third - and especially applicable to Peace Corps - students in Tirana have many more opportunities than students at PCV sites. Tirana schools have more resources. English is spoken frequently in the big city. Therefore, we tried to keep things separate and equitable this year. It wasn't perfect, but we did our best.

I am beyond grateful for this project. Running the national competition for Albania has been a fantastic learning experience. Some things went well, and some can be improved for next year's program. Participating PCVs gave copious and fantastic feedback that I plan on implementing. I also plan to apply for a grant or ask a RPCV to start a GoFundMe. I didn't think we would need one - the program hasn't in the past - and we pulled the program off with no budget, but I would rather not do that again.