School Teaches Children From War-Torn Areas

DECATUR, Ga. - A village in Decatur is changing the lives of a very special group of young girls.

Bertha Nibigira fled civil war in Burundi, East Africa. Bertha is a student at Decatur's Global Village -- a non-profit school that doubles as a safe haven, for young girls who are from war-torn countries.

They have lost family and friends to violence and now there's the battle of communicating in a foreign country.

The girls range in age from 12 to 20, and most are unable to speak English.

They are immediately launched into a tough curriculum involving intense training in the English language, a months-long study essential in linking them to their new world.

Within a year's time, these girls mastered English and moved to the top of their class.

"Every time you interact with a student, you make a difference,” said math teacher Darryl Lorick.

The girls are now survivors who sing songs filled with happiness and joy. The stage is a far cry from their past setting -- a life of moving from camp to camp, sometimes from country to country.

Rita Par left behind Burma.

"They really teach from the heart. It’s very nice to be here,’ said Par.

It takes a village, some say, but at the Global Village School, freedom is measured one precious step, one precious word at a time.

Some of the girls used to work as carpet workers in their war-torn lands and now they are A students.

Soon they will all mainstream into public school, making way for the next group of girls who will be relocated to this area, by the state department.