Video
Professor and 27 Months
Bill Zimmerman is a Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) in Buea,
Cameroon. As an Information Technology specialist in the
education program, Bill heads a computer learning center there. He records his experiences and adventures in his
personal blog.
Zimmerman holds a leadership position at the Teachers’ Resource
Centre (TRC) and thanks to a contribution from
Video Professor, the Buea TRC is now equipped with a
full library of Video Professor titles. In a letter to Video Professor CEO and Founder, John
W. Scherer, he thanked Scherer for this generous gift. It
is in Zimmerman’s blog, however, that the entire story of
the effects of Video Professor’s tutorial donation is
detailed.
Zimmerman wrote in his blog that his neighbor in Cameroon,
18-year-old Simon, has lived in Buea his entire life.
When he received a complimentary membership card to the
Buea TRC from Zimmerman, Simon became a regular fixture at the
computer lab. Although Simon was a novice at computers when
he began at the TRC, he did not shy away from attempting
complex operations. With the
help of Video Professor’s advanced, Learn HTML tutorial,
Simon dove headfirst into the world of web page design. Simon
soon absorbed Video Professor’s lesson, taking scrupulous
notes and committing the instructions to
memory.
After his success with Video Professor’s tutorial on HTML
and web design, Simon went on to become a true tech expert.
Simon later enrolled in web design and Photoshop® classes at
private centers in Buea, and got his first hi-tech job at a
Buea cyber café. Zimmerman marveled in his blog over
Simon’s dedication and enthusiasm on the subject.
Video Professor’s tutorials helped Simon discover and
fine-tune his passion for computer technology and Simon
went on to receive the first computer literacy attestation
ever issued by the Buea TRC. Simon’s success is a sign of
the good work done by the PCV and speaks to the effectiveness of the Video
Professor product.
Also highlighted in Zimmerman’s 27-month blog is a
detailed description of his trip to retrieve the box
of Video Professor donations sent by John W. Scherer. Bill,
along with a companion named Hans (whom he calls his
“Cameroonian Swiss army knife” for all-purpose salvation) traveled
to Douala. Douala, often called “the armpit of
Africa,” is an economic capital of Cameroon famed for its
high level of crime. Zimmerman reported in his blog that the PCV had been repeatedly told that Douala was no
place for them. Nevertheless, in order to retrieve the
donation from Video Professor, they gladly made
the trek.
Along their journey,
the pair encountered several helpful individuals with whom they
shared an impromptu meal and eventually retrieved the
Video
Professor package without a hitch. He
successfully installed his new, free, Video Professor
title library at the TRC, much to the delight and
appreciation of its patrons. Thanks to Video
Professor’s donation, Zimmerman wrote in his letter of
gratitude, a new interest in learning
computers developed at the TRC. Mentioning
star pupil Simon, Zimmerman expressed his astonishment in
seeing “a young Cameroonian new to computers just a
short time ago, coding web pages by his second lesson.”
Video Professor products are making a stir far beyond its
home base of Colorado. With donations of Video Professor
titles to U.S. troops stationed in the Middle East, to Peace
Corps volunteers in Africa and to social organizations all
over the country, John W. Scherer is quickly becoming more
than just a household name in computer instruction. He is
becoming a household name in social justice and charity.