A Jane and Jean update

Last year I blogged about two students of mine named Jane and Jean. I thought it would be appropriate to give a little update about their happenings.

Jane received a Taiwan Scholarship from the Taiwan Embassy in the Marshall Islands. The scholarship finances all of her expenses, including travel and a living stipend, for four years of study at a Taiwanese University of her choice. She also has the option of deferring university study for one year in order to study Chinese, bringing her total time in Taiwan to five years. Jane is the first public high school student to receive the Taiwan Scholarship.

Jean became pregnant at the age of 15. She did not tell any of her family members, only her friends. Her friends told me. I talked with Jean and begged her not to attempt a homebrew abortion, which are sadly very common in the Marshall Islands. These abortions typically consist of drinking copious amounts of soy sauce, using a coat hanger, engaging in strenuous physical activity, etc. Instead, I urged her to have the baby and let her family raise it, also a very common practice in the Marshall Islands. Jean agreed but did not adhere to the agreement. She aborted the baby by having her friends jump on her back. According to one of her friends, "We jumped on her and it fell out." Jean had straight A's last semester.