By Maria Jose Aldana | Guatemala Country Manager
With your support these past few months, Girl Rising has prepared for the launch of our Guatemala pilot program in 2019. We’re excited to share with you some highlights of what we’ve been able to accomplish so far!
GR’s Guatemala Curriculum is ready to go: GR has just completed the translation of the GR curriculum to Spanish, and we’ve made sure to connect our materials with the national basic curriculum approved by the Ministry of Education of Guatemala. We’ve also adapted curriculum components (videos, discussion guides, storybooks and more) to honor local contexts, customs and cultural norms, and added a brand new story to the GR storybook illustrated by a local artist. We look forward to sharing snapshots of our GR Guatemala curriculum with you soon!
Our partners, mentors and teachers are primed and excited to begin: This past November, GR collaborated with our two local program partners - REDMI Aq’ab’al and Starfish - to host a mentor training session in preparation for our program launch. The session included a screening of four of the GR film chapters tied to the curriculum, a review of the curriculum as a whole and a candid discussion about the tough issues the curriculum highlights (some of which include forced marriage, adolescent pregnancy, sexual violence, forced labor and obstacles to education). In 2019, the mentors from REDMI Aq’ab’al will be ready to reach around 150 girls in eight rural communities (not all of these girls currently attend school, but they will all have access to a safe space to see the films, participate in discussions and explore the GR curriculum). The mentors from Starfish will be ready to engage around 50 girls who are currently enrolled in the 9th grade at their school.
We’re working hard to engage our community and build relationships: We know from experience that for a program to be truly successful, we’ll need the buy-in and support of the adults and the community who surround the girls we’ll be working with. We have thus dedicated significant time to building strong relationships with local partners, and eventually, with parents and community leaders. For this, we have developed tools that allow mentors to clearly explain the program structure and goals, as well as hold community screenings and discussions about some of the issues GR’s films cover.
To lay the groundwork for our larger Guatemala and Central America campaigns, we have been meeting with regional peer organizations who work with adolescents and girls. We’ve learned a tremendous amount and have been honored to be a part of discussions about how to create a more united front to advocate for increased investment in girls’ education.
We are just a short month away from the official launch of our pilot program in Guatemala. A heartfelt thank you to all our donors who have supported our work so far - we cannot wait to share more with you soon! In the meantime, on behalf of Girl Rising, we wish you and your loved ones a wonderful holiday season and New Year.
With gratitude,
María José Aldana
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