Our buildings and facilites are now going on ten years old! They are all built of wood and bamboo which are now all suffering from decay and insect infestation. These are not ideal conditions for our students and teachers to work under. It is also requiring constant maintenance and reparation that takes money away from programming which is our mission. We need funding for building materials and local labor to replaces the walls, posts, and roof of our administration building.
During the past two years, our classrooms and facilities have been completely empty due to the pandemic. Due to the economic stress of these difficult times, we were not able to do much needed repairs. In addition to normal wear and tear, we also experienced an especially strong rainy season this year. We are experiencing strong erosion, electrical problems and termite infestation.
As much as we love our bamboo and wood construction, financially it is no longer sustainable. We plan to change the bamboo walls for brick walls, thus making the building stronger, weather resistant and more permanent. It is also time to change plumbing in the bathrooms and kitchens as these have also now suffered ten years of decay.
This choice to change to a more durable material (brick) is based on our hope to continue serving the community of Canoa for many years to come. With refurbished facilities, we will be able to bring back the computer lab and classes. The teachers will recover their lounge to use in between classes. We will have a cleaner and more organized space to store didactic materials for use in class. One classroom will be completely refurbished as well as the secretary and director's office.
