Current News

CC student appears on "60 Minutes"

January 07, 2005

Beatrice Biira, a CC freshman who grew up in a poor rural village in Uganda and eventually realized her goal of education through assistance from Heifer International, was featured in a segment on "60 Minutes" on Wednesday, Jan. 12 at 8 p.m. (EST).

Today Beatrice is studying international politics, human development and economics at Connecticut College, but 10 years ago education was just a dream.

Growing up in Kisinga, a village off the beaten path in western Uganda, Beatrice and her family, consisting of seven siblings and her mother, were too poor to afford school. Her life consisted of hauling water, hoeing and planting, grinding flour and caring for her younger siblings.

But in 1994, Beatrice's family was one of twelve in the village that received a goat through the charity Heifer International. It was Beatrice's responsibility to care for the goat, and the goat's milk provided a valuable source of nutrition, as well as income as the family sold the extra milk at the local market. The goat - named Mugisa (meaning luck) - soon produced offspring, which eventually were also sold. The steady income from the sale of the extra milk was enough to enable Beatrice and her brothers and sisters to attend the local primary school, as well as purchase medicine, clothing and supplies.

In 2001 Beatrice's story was portrayed in a New York Times best-selling book "Beatrice's Goat," prompting a book tour that took Beatrice to more than 17 states. In 2002 she was a guest on "The Oprah Winfrey Show." Last year she won a full scholarship to attend Northfield Mount Hermon School in Massachusetts, and while there applied to 11 American colleges and universities, including Connecticut College.

Having just completed her first semester, Beatrice is a fairly typical college student. She's still deciding what to major in - perhaps international relations, she says. For the service learning component of her human development class she spent time at the Children's Museum of Southeastern Connecticut in Niantic, assisting with the children's activities. She passed the audition to sing in the college choir, but a scheduling conflict made it impossible for her to participate. She hopes to join the Model U.N. club. Like any freshman, she eats in the cafeteria, lives in a dormitory with a roommate and spends a whole lot of time in the library.

"The idea of finally being here is incredible," Biira said. "I just couldn't wait to get here."

Her goal is to complete her education and return to Uganda to help her country's development.

View a video clip of the segment and read a summarized transcript on the CBS "60 Minutes" website.

For media inquiries contact: Deborah MacDonnell (860) 439-2504, dmacdonn@conncoll.edu; or Caroline Gransee (860) 439-2508, cgransee@conncoll.edu