Creating Educational Opportunity for Maya Children

Johanny and Sandy are the team behind the Primary Education Scholarships project. They work with families who are determined to give their children the opportunity to study in spite of considerable social and economic obstacles.

Each year, Johanny and Sandy host a series of workshops for parents of students sponsored through the project. They decided to focus this year’s sessions on a topic relevant to our partner communities: school dropout and how to prevent it.

On Wednesday, June 12, Johanny and Sandy were setting up for a workshop in Panabaj, one of the four neighborhoods of Santiago Atitlán where sponsored students live and study. As they dragged chairs into place, mothers of sponsored students arrived one after another, some with younger children in tow.

The facilitators began the session by introducing the day’s theme. “We want to hear from you,” Johanny continued. “What factors contribute to school dropout in your community?” The participants’ answers ranged from bullying at school to economic concerns to a lack of support from teachers. Sandy wrote down each answer on a large wall display.

Then, Sandy asked the mothers, “What can we as parents do about these problems? How can we make sure our children have the support they need to stay in school?” The participants had plenty of ideas, questions, and frustrations to share. One mother suggested regular meetings with the child’s teacher. Another countered that her child’s teacher has been uninterested in even talking with her. Johanny proposed, “If your child’s teacher is not helpful, try speaking with  the school principal—you have every right to request support from your child’s school.”

Sandy and Johanny also urged parents to promote gender equity in their homes. “It is important that our sons and our daughters have the same opportunities, including the opportunity to study,” Johanny told participants, “and this starts at home. Our daughters shouldn’t be the only ones helping to sweep and wash and cook—our sons can help too!” Teaching children that girls are just as smart and capable as boys will help them to succeed in school despite obstacles, she explained.

After many rounds of questions, answers, suggestions, and follow-ups, the facilitators shared a snack with the participants and the mothers set off for home once again. Johanny and Sandy packed up their materials and headed back to the office. Now that they have wrapped up their workshops in all four communities, they will interview participating mothers to see what they learned and what our team can do better next time.

Johanny feels that she gains as much from facilitating these workshops as the mothers do from participating. “It’s important that the mothers we work with feel they can trust us, and these sessions help us build rapport,” she says. “When we show that we’re listening, that we’re here to help, the mothers are more likely to reach out to us when their children are having trouble in school.” It is this dedication to individual mothers, students, and families that makes Johanny and Sandy such valuable allies. Your support of the Primary Education Scholarships project makes all of this possible: greater understanding, stronger collaboration, and smarter problem-solving that keeps kids learning, growing, and attending school!

Links:

• Primary Education Scholarships at Pueblo a Pueblo

The students who are sponsored through the Primary Education Scholarships project overcome countless obstacles to getting an education every day. We believe that education empowers young people to build positive change in their communities—that’s why our team works hard to support passionate young learners with the resources they need to attend school and succeed. Elena and Dorcas are two students sponsored through the project whose education is made possible by donors like you. Below are the messages of hope, ambition, and gratitude that they would like to share with you, our extended Pueblo a Pueblo community.

Elena is a fourth grader at Panabaj Primary School. She writes about her neighborhood, “In Panabaj we are always happy.” To the donors who support her, she writes,

I am happy because of what you have given me. Thank you so much for the school supplies, backpack, and Christmas present. I am very grateful for your support because I need it very much. My parents are also thankful for the help you have given me. I hope that you can continue to support me because I need your help to continue studying.

My goal is to be a teacher and give a good education to the children in my community and to give a good example of success for them. It makes me so happy to talk about my dreams and goals. With nothing more to say, I say goodbye.

Dorcas is a fourth grader at Chacayá Primary School. She has a cat named Mateo and a dog named Monkey. To the donors who support her education, she writes,

I am in the fourth grade thanks to my parents because they have supported me and they look after me and my siblings so that we can reach our future goals and take advantage of our schooling. I’m also grateful that there is a little school in my community, because without that school my family would have to pay a lot more for me to study somewhere else.

If God wills it, in sixth grade I will have the power to study how to prevent violence in our community so that it does not go any further. In the event it happens, my parents will be very grateful. With the support you have given me, my father says that one day I can be the professional of my family because not only boys are able to study and we have the same rights.

We support students like Dorcas and Elena because we want to see them advocate for future generations of children like them. We want to see them fight for peace and justice in their communities. We want to see them grow up into confident women who know that they are just as capable as their brothers of changing the world for the better.

Your support fuels Dorcas and Elena’s success. Thank you for believing in young students like them and in the power of education!

Links:

• Pueblo a Pueblo