The big project of providing educational materials for over 5,000 rural students was accomplished in January and early February. You can see the collage of most of the 5,560 students by scrolling down, or see the Success Stories, clicking on: SCHOOL SUPPLIES.
We have on file requests from a number of schools. Some of them are:
1. New classrooms for several schools with growing student populations.
2. Several schools need quite desperately sanitary facilities.
3. We have 3 requests for school kitchens.
OUR APPROACH--is one of 3-way partnership and cooperative action: The Foundation, through our Guatemalan directors, helps the community with a need organize themselves to plan the project and provide at least 30% of the costs, usually with volunteer labor and donations of local building materials.
Above we see Federico, our Regional Director, meeting with the Valparaiso Improvement Committee to lay the groundwork for a needed classroom at the school.
Our directors then coordinate their efforts with the local municipal and educational authorities to acquire as much of their help as possible.
The Foundation then steps in with what is lacking, usually around 30%.
NOTE: The Foundation's share of each of the projects listed above cost about $2,000 to $2,500 each.
In the photo composition we see the system in action: A donation of property was acquired for the school. A meeting was held with the community and municipal leaders and the community organized to build the school. The Foundation provided construction materials. The community provided volunteer labor. The municipal government provided the necessary skilled labor. A school was created.
There is still lot needed to be done by the students and surely for the future would even govern better foundations to be tried out.
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