Building Her Will Power | Issue 02.
Stories of Strength, Hope and the Power of the Human Spirit
Living Wisdom · Afghanistan High School
A free, accredited online high school for Afghan women denied education under Taliban rule. Their stories — and their courage — are here.
Featured · June 2026
It was an ordinary day. I was checking my inbox when I saw it — an email from the school saying I had been accepted, and that lessons would begin in a few months. As I read, I couldn't control my emotions. Tears fell onto my phone screen — tears of joy, but also of grief. Just the day before, the Taliban had come to the English course I was attending and told every girl in the room: "You are girls. You can no longer continue studying here." I still haven't forgotten the manager's tears, or the boys who laughed as we girls walked home crying.
Reading that acceptance letter in that moment felt like discovering an entire world of hope after everything we had just been through. I waited impatiently for school to begin. And when it finally did, my ordinary days became my dream life.
Before Living Wisdom, my days had a heaviness to them. I would wake up late, feel tired, and spend hours thinking about what I had lost — the classroom I missed, the future I couldn't yet see. Each day was the same as the one before it.
Now, every day I wake up early with hope. I do some exercises. I thank God for every single thing I have. I try to live mindfully, in the present moment, and to enjoy every minute of my life — even on the cloudy days, even when things feel heavy. I still find something to enjoy, something to be grateful for.
Being part of this school means living your dream life — even when you are not in your favorite place, even when you don't have everything you want, even when you are not perfect.
I no longer want to have a great deal. I have learned, instead, how to enjoy small things.
— Shabnam Amiri
Our mission
With your support, we can provide free online accredited high school education to Afghan women that offers a pathway to a college degree and training and employment to Afghan teachers. Together, we can envision a future where educated Afghan women become the architects of change in their lives, helping to rebuild Afghan society and overcome the confines of inequality, poverty, and limited opportunities.
We see these girls not just as students, but as the future leaders of their communities, working towards prosperity, innovation, creativity, and social progress.
Afghanistan is the only country in the world in which women and girls are denied education. This gender apartheid threatens Afghan society and has global implications for international human rights. The collaborative project between The Living Wisdom School and Victory Afghanistan is a crucial step towards addressing this issue.
Living Wisdom International High School welcomes applications from Afghan young women seeking a high school degree from an accredited online high school at no cost.
Living Wisdom International High School provides educational opportunities for both middle school and high school students world-wide.
Stories by Afghan students — Subscribe on Substack
Stories of Strength, Hope and the Power of the Human Spirit
Stories of Strength, Hope and the Power of the Human Spirit
Welcome to Living Wisdom School's Monthly Literary and Visual Arts Publication
Written by the women of the Afghanistan High School program.
August 2025
A journey across impossible distances — physical, emotional, and political — told with unflinching honesty.
Read the story
June 2025
Two sisters, one determination: to finish school together, whatever the cost.
Read the story
April 2024
The story of a program that dared to believe education could reach where laws could not.
Read the story
September 2024
In secrecy, by lamplight, with a borrowed screen — one student refused to let silence be the last word.
Read the story
July 2024
"I write this by lamplight while my family sleeps. My textbook is hidden under the floorboards."
Read the letter
October 2024
An instructor reflects on what it means to teach across borders, firewalls, and fear.
Read the story
May 2024 · Video
Watch the story of Living Wisdom's Afghanistan program — why it exists, how it works, and what it means to the women it serves.
Watch the videoYour support keeps Afghan women in school. Every donation funds free, accredited education for a young woman who has no other option.