Education Nicaragua Project #24311

High School Expansion

by Waves of Hope

Project Report | Dec 7, 2016
Breaking Ground

By Jamie Collum | Project Leader / Director, Waves of Hope

Graduation

We have spent the past few weeks fundraising and working on the design for the classroom. Thanks to many of you we were able to raise $10000 USD on #GivingTuesday through Gobal Giving and our other donation platforms. This money alongside with a sizeable donation from Artbound has given us enough funding to bgein construcion on two of the classrooms so they will be ready in time for classes to begin in February 2017.

Over the past two weeks we have been working with a local architect / engineer Dorian Espinoza on the design of the classrooms and have also been receiving design support from BCG Engineering in Canada. We had to complete several soil quality tests to determine the best way to construct the classrooms to ensure there are structurally sound and earthquake resistant. We have settled on a design and will be receiving quotes from 3 builders on Tuesday and we will be breaking ground later this week.

We also celebrated our first group of 15 graduate students this past Friday at the high school! It was a great day and proud moment for our community!

Links:

3D Design of 2 classrooms

Attachments:

3 Attachments

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Sep 7, 2016
High School Expansion- Fundraising Stage

By Jamie Collum | Directory

Opening day of classes 2016

As we are still in the fundraising stage for this project we would just like to share our story and an update of the high school with you.

How it all Began…

In 2012, our community approached us with the idea of building a high school. They had identified that attendance at the elementary schools had grown, but the options for continuing to high school were inadequate.

The existing high school choices as of 2012 were:

1. A five-year intensive Sunday program, located in a local elementary class
2. Travelling at least two hours daily on multiple buses to attend the closest high school

Consequently, only a small minority of local children chose to further their education past the sixth grade.

Waves of Hope agreed to champion the project, which involved both logistical and financial support and it was a great team effort that included:

• Getting initial agreement from the Ministry of Education
• Dedicated local teenagers and young adults, who went door-to-door to gauge interest and build community support for the project.
• Raising $130,000 to support the construction through various fundraising initiatives and collaborations with other like-minded non-profits such as Surf for Life
• Hosting over 250 volunteers who worked alongside our community to physically build the high school

How Far We’ve Come: Our High School by the Numbers

2014 Year 1 76 students in attendance

2015 Year 2 144 students

2016 Year 3 210 students

2017 Year 4 (projected) 240 students

2018 Year 5 (projected) 300+ students

In December 2016 we will see the first class of 16 students receive their graduation certificates. Many plan to move on to post-secondary programs. Our role in the planning and construction of Olas de Esperanza High School is one of our proudest accomplishments, and we have so much gratitude and appreciation for the hundreds of individuals, families, schools, organizations and corporations who helped bring the school to life.

A Good Problem To Have…The Growing Culture of Education in Northern Nicaragua

This past February, we were honored to attend this year’s opening day assembly to kick off the new school year. As always, the energy was high, the uniforms were crisp and there was a buzz in the air.

It was on this day that the director of the school approached us and said that we had a big problem: the numbers at the school are growing more quickly than projected and we are running out of space to accommodate new students.

This is a good problem to have- and we are so proud to witness these exciting changes in the attitude and culture of education that are taking place in our community.

One Brick at a Time!

Beginning this December when the school year has ended, we are hoping to begin constructing four new classrooms to meet the increased demand for secondary education.

Opening day of the high school 2014

Links:

Buy a Brick Campaign

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