Francisco is 8 years old and he can’t wait for school to start in early February! He couldn’t go last year because, with an average income of just $2 a day, the family of five struggle just to put food on the table. They can’t make funds stretch far enough for pencils or shoes. But this year, Francisco will have one of the JustHope back-pack scholarships &mdash a brand new backpack with a school uniform inside! And socks and shoes… and all the supplies he needs to start the year! So will 300 other students, with 200 still on the waiting list.
See what you did with just $50!
Mrs. Aura is also excited about going back to school. She’s been teaching 1st thru 2nd grade in Chacraseca for several years, but this is the first year she is starting school with some real teaching resources. JustHope’s Teacher Enrichment program has equipped half the schools in Chacraseca with a crate of teaching supplies, such as maps and globes, books and subject charts, and other other material resources that can be used year after year. AND, our Teacher Enrichment partner groups have given the teachers some new ideas for making learning more fun and engaging! This year, we hope to equip the rest of the schools in Chacraseca and La Flor with these great teaching crates and workshops!
See what your donations made possible!
Rudolfo’s classes don’t start until March, but he’s excited to be going back for his third year (out of five required) of Nursing school. Supported by a group of 10 women in the States, the cost of his tuition and books are covered, and there’s a small fund accumulating each year to help with graduation costs! It’s still not easy to meet all the financial demands of going to college, but Rudolfo shares...
What motivates me at University is that every theoretical class also has a practical component. This helps improve my learning. I live quite far from the University so it is sometimes a bit difficult to catch the three different buses I have to take to make it to class, and living so far also makes it hard to access the resources I need to complete my assignments and research projects. But without JustHope’s scholarship program, I would not have made it beyond high school. Now, I have a chance to become a Nurse!
JustHope has 13 university scholars this year; some supported by small groups of folks working together, others by a single donor. $1000 a year sends a student to college.
See what one small group can make possible!
Making it possible for kids to attend school in either Chacraseca or La Flor takes LOTS of partnerships. Partnerships with donors, and also partnerships in and with the community:
- Stitching Hope (our women’s sewing co-op) are making the school uniforms at reduced costs.
- The general stores in both Chacraseca and La Flor help kids without scholarships to get school supplies at reduced costs.
- Leaders visit parents and encourage them to send their kids to school.
- Teachers buy teaching resources with their tiny teacher salaries (average $200 per month).
- Parents take turns cooking school lunches and working in the community gardens that grow vegetables to supplement the lunches.
- The government pays the teachers and community members maintain the schools.
- JustHope university scholarship recipients volunteer as classroom assistants and tutors.
It takes more than a village to educate a child… It takes a globe!
