GlobalGiving.org: School for Mayan Children, Lake Atitlan, Guatemala

Thank you for your support

Ross Deans — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 10:17:13 GMT

We have been working with Pena Blanca, an Indigenous community on the edge of Guatemala’s beautiful Lake Atitlan for a number of years. Over this period volunteers have joined us from around the world to work in the school providing much needed classroom assistance. In addition donors have given generously helping us to work with the community to make dramatic improvements to the standard of and accessibility to education.

Project director Dom Williams explains: 'There are now 6 regular teachers in the school and the government has started to increase their own food supplies for the school. Thanks to the past few years of our involvement, the realisation that the work is necessary has given the community new impetus to move forward on their own.'

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to everyone who has supported us and the community during this time, none of this would have been possible without you.

We will now be focusing our efforts in Guatemala on our work near to Antigua. We have a separate project live for this project which can be seen here. We work with two communities and have established our own schools which provide free daily education and food programs to some of the areas poorest children.

GVI win best volunteer organization!

Ross Deans — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 14:29:44 GMT

GVI Responsible Travel Article

We are delighted to share that GVI have just been announced winners of the best volunteer organization category at the Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards. We would like to extend our sincere appreciation to everyone who voted for and supported us.

GVI volunteers work on this project throughout the year making important hands on contributions to our work. The attached article explains some of the impact made on our project in Guatemala and elsewhere thanks to everyone’s hard work and support.

Attachments:

GVI Responsible Travel Article (PDF)

Support on the ground in Lake Atitlan, Guatemala

Alton Germain — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 10:49:26 GMT

Teaching at Lake Atitlan

During June and August, 14 Whole Foods Market Team Members joined the project in Lake Atitlan, Guatemala.

While in the community school, Team Members and GVI staff covered over 350 hours of instruction time in grades K-6. The average class size ranges between 20-34 students, with 185 students in total. The school in Peña Blanca, Buena Vista has increased their enrollment by 10% from the previous year. GVI staff and TMs assisted and presented their own lessons during the morning session and gave an additional 1.5 hours of instruction in the afternoon in a class run exclusively by TMs and GVI staff. This class consisted of students in grades K-4. Peak numbers in the afternoon reached 32 in attendance and an average turnout of 23 students.

It is so great to see this project moving forwards with brilliant results in the school as the children progress.

Progress in 2011

Alton Germain — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 09:26:57 GMT

The 2011 school year has started with the addition of 28 more students. Most are our youngest, grades Kindergarten and 1st grade.The total enrollment now stands at 198 students. The younger grades are focusing on basic numeracy and the Spanish alphabet, The majority of the students learn their ancestral language of Kakchiquel first. Spanish is their second language and the majority of the content, especially with our Kinergarten and 1st graders, is learning the Spanish language. The older students are taking classes in biology, social studies, mathematics and Spanish. Our challenge this year is to continue supporting the education of the children with the proper school supplies and materials to realize their lessons. With the increase in the school enrollment, it is essential that we also continue our food & fruit program that has helped so much in the educational development of the students Guatemala remains top on the list of countries in the Western Hemisphere that suffer from malnutrition With more students our funding for this initiative is vital to the success of the program.

School year comes to an end

Dom Williams — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 14:16:53 GMT

The food program is a huge success

In our community in Lake Atitlan, Pena Blanca, the school year has now come to an end and almost all the children will be moving into the next grade. It is so great to see these kids doing so well, earning an education and benefitting from the opportunities that this presents.

The food program in the school is doing very well meaning that each of the children receive nutritional meals when they come to school helping them to grow healthy and strong and concentrate in lessons.

Thank you so much to everyone who has supported this project through the year and made this possible.

Indigenous university students help in school

Alton Germain — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 14:13:25 GMT

We are continuing to supply academic assistance in the form of scholarships, school supplies and human resources to the rural the indigenous community of Buena Vista, located in the mountains overlooking the beautiful Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.

With the assistance of donations and volunteers we are able provide school supplies, teach Elementary level students basic numeracy and literacy skills and help serve food to the children. We also work with arts and craft projects and Physical Education.

We have also contracted three university students to work as teacher aides and help the volunteers with translations and lesson planning. These three young women are indigenous and speak the native language of the students, Spanish and also some English. It is great to have Indigenous girls who have progressed through to University level come and give something back to other Indigenous children and inspire them to succeed.

The effects of Agatha

Ross Deans — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 22:06:05 GMT

Indigenous girls with the oppourtunity to learn

Sadly Tropical Storm Agatha brought much destruction to Guatemala which has caused havoc for many of the Indigenous communities already struggling to get by. Houses were destroyed and crops were washed which means food prices are already rising. We will still be providing support on the ground and supplying funding for the school to help give the kids the chance to realize their basic human right to an education.

Children continue to receive nutritional food and

Dom Williams — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 15:08:32 GMT

Our food program continues up at lake Atitlan, with all sorts of nutritional food being provided. Fruit is key, due to vitamins and water intake, so we are concentrating on this area. Crops are beginning to fail, so this program is imperative.

End of the school year and looking forward to 2010

Dom Williams — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 22:08:43 GMT

The children have moved on successfully this year in their educational life, and we are told that many more families have decided to send there children to the school in 2010, taking us over 200, which is a great achievement and shows what can be done with a lot of hard work. Thanks to everyone involved and Happy New Year cheers

Charity Challenge

Dom — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:13:37 GMT

Greetings. The project at the lake has had an excellent year and to start fundraising for next year, I will be embarking on a Charity Challenge, climbing 4 volcanoes in 6 days, so please, if you can, spare a penny or two to help raise funds for such a good cause. cheers

Back to school after H1N1 scares

Dom Williams — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 21:24:34 GMT

Teaching has continued in Peña Blanca, albeit on a lesser level due to the H1N1 flu scares which caused a two week hiatus imposed by the government last month. There have been no cases at the school or in the community and the children returned at the beginning of the month. It actually turned out well as I believe that at least the department of Solola would have shut down the schools anyways due to the heavy rains and cold temperatures. The students are due for another round of standardized testing coming up and the teachers are preparing them.

Teaching continues at a pace

Alton Germain — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 20:25:14 GMT

Materials provided by donations

The Teacher Empowerment Plan has produced tangible effects in the first month and we are planning the allocation of more equipment including game and practice balls, nets, posts and cones. The teachers were also able to use some of this funding for their annual Indian Market. April is a festive month here as we are in Holy Week. All schools around the country will be shut until Monday the 13th of April. Upon return we will be beginning a new term, classroom content and the continuation of our Teacher Empowerment Plan.

Taking a break

Siblings in school

Education continues in school holidays

Dom Williams — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 18:05:24 GMT

Despite the break for school holidays stretching back to October 2008, the children continued to receive daily education,thanks to the project. Emphasis was on literacy and numeracy for the children who had fallen behind towards the end of 2008. With several days without national teachers over the coming months already planned for, the children should not miss a day's education in this educational year.