Recent News

COVID couldn’t stop us

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, AC1 2021 for Anglophone iDELTA has gone ahead in Uganda. Some of the staff couldn’t get here, but Lweza has offered us a safe island in which to flourish. There is plenty of space for football, bike riding and walking.

For the first time, we tried a new way of offering courses. The Sociolinguistics course has run for the usual 8 weeks. However, Phonetics and Bible Translation Basics 1 were taught in the first 4 weeks, and Survey and Literacy 1 were taught in the second 4 weeks. Due to issues related to COVID, some staff were unable to come to Uganda, so the first 4 weeks of Sociolinguistics were taught via Zoom. The Literacy 1 class is being taught online for the same reason.

Since our arrival, Uganda has been in lockdown, so movement from one county to another is difficult. However, we have stayed in our little bubble and no students have been ill with COVID or anything else. Even malaria has not made an appearance.

With two weeks to go, everyone is tired and feels their heads won’t hold any more information. But we will persevere to the end and give thanks to God for his protection.

Activities while staying safe

Bible Translation and the Church 2020

There are about 12 students currently taking the online Bible Translation and the Church course. We want to encourage these students to stay focused and complete their assignments in a timely manner. We also hope that those who have not yet signed up for this required course, will contact the Registrar to get in the 2021 semester.

Congratulations!

We are pleased to announce that another iDELTA student, Alamadin Mitto, has completed his B.Th. degree at SATS. He has worked hard, run the race and finished that course. He is now putting to good use what he has learned.

What to do until 2021

Until we can hold AC1, we would like to encourage you to sign up for the online Bible Translation and the Church course. The fee is $50. Please email the Registrar about signing up. A new course will probably start in July. It is required for ALL tracks.

Additionally, if you are in translation or Scripture Engagement, you could start your courses with South African Theological Seminary (SATS). Please work with your supervisors and when you apply, please notify the Registrar so that you get the best rate for payment.

Upside down world

In the past three months, our world has turned upside down, with lockdowns in many countries due to the COVID-19 crisis. These are not easy times, and we pray that you will be well and able to continue working in some fashion. However, the administration feels this is not the right time to ask people to leave their home countries to travel and possibly spread the virus. So, the Academic Course 1 (AC1) has been postponed until June 2021. We pray there will be a vaccine by that time, and it will be safe for us to meet together.

Praying for your safety

All of us at iDELTA are praying that in these days of COVID-19 that you and your families are able to stay safe and well. These are very challenging times, and no one is finding it easy to change how we live, stay away from others and have enough resources to function. God has promised to look after the birds and He knows the number of hairs on your head. So, let us continue to pray and also trust that He will care for each of us. God is doing something significant, so let’s keep listening to His voice and following His directives.

AC1 Postponed

This week, the government of Uganda, our program’s host country, announced tighter restrictions on travelers from certain countries classified as “high-risk”, including mandatory institutional quarantine, and rigorous screening for all other international travelers. Locally, starting yesterday, 20 March 2020, the government imposed a ban on public gatherings: religious, academic, economic, political, and social alike at least for the next 32 days, to be reviewed depending on how the COVID-19 situation unfolds worldwide. 
Granted, a lot could improve in a short time reversing the status quo, it is fewer than three months to the start of AC1. So even if the situation of COVID-19 were to ease up, its impact could last long enough to make AC1 in June 2020 practically impossible. 

Therefore, as the iDELTA leadership, we feel painfully obliged to provisionally move AC1 to Aug-Sept 2020. We hope that this would allow a bit more time for the best or worst of the COVID-19 situation to unravel. If things only get worse, we’ll be forced to reschedule for next year. We’ll keep monitoring the situation and should have a firm position communicated to you before the end of June 2020.
We very much apologize for the inconvenience this change will pose. We call you all to more prayer but also to more precaution for the safety of yourselves and those under your care as we keep the divine hope in the God of the impossible to normalize things very soon. 

Registration for AC1 is now open

Check on the homepage to download the file for registering for iDELTA AC1. This is the form you should use if you have been accepted already. If you have not yet applied, please complete the application form as soon as possible. We don’t want you to miss anything!