Help School fight Climate Change w/ Green Building

Long Way Home has been granted the UNESCO-Japan Education for Sustainable Development Award! 

Along with two other international programs, we have been recognized for this UNESCO award and are feeling incredibly honored. We got to send some team members to the ceremony in France where they shared more about our work and connected with other professionals in the fields of education and sustainable development. You can learn more about the award in this press release and watch the ceremony here.

Thank you, to all of our supporters, for the love and generosity you have given us. Without you we would not be where we are with Hero School and gaining this recognition. With every book we buy, lesson plan we make, and student that smiles, we are thinking of you.

Students, teachers, and the green building team have joined forces once again to execute green building projects in the community. 

Students apply what they have learned in maths, sciences, and even social studies to identify highest needs of the community and build green infrastructure there at no cost to families. They were joined by GAP Year students from the USA to build water cisterns, improved stoves, a tire retaining wall, and dry composting latrines. We all gained more experience, got to play in the mud, and built infrastructure that will changes how families live on the day to day. 

Hero School will stay open for the month of November in an elective post school year session.

The official school year has wrapped up with a beautiful graduation ceremony for students, teachers, and families. However, this November we are also keeping Hero School open for an extra month long special session. Our extra session was first suggested by teachers noticing additional needs in their classrooms. It is optional to students but we have seen high levels of participation and a true eagerness to learn from these bright young kids. Our goal is to help students, especially those in the younger grades, with more classroom time and focused teaching so they have the tools to excel in the next grade levels. Also, we are providing additional music classes as our marimba lessons are booming with multiple community inquiries for students to play at events. Students are not only having fun in this creative outlet but preserving their culture and being recognized for their efforts.  And of course, with the school staying open we are also providing an extra month of work and income for local teachers in Comalapa.

Giving Tuesday is next Tuesday, November 28, 2023, we would really appreciate any extra support you can share with us.

Donations made on this day will be matched through GlobalGiving so your impact is doubled! Our goal is to raise enough on this one day to off set the cost of keeping the school open for the entire month of November. A $130 donation by you will be matched for a total of $260 and able to pay the salary of a local teacher in Comalapa. Anything given is greatly appreciated.

Links:

• UNESCO Webinar on Education For Sustainable Development Prize

Summary

Long Way Home has been busy in the past months! From winning first place for charter schools of Comalapa in a football match to performing cultural dances at school assemblies to student graduation. Most notably the efforts of Green Building students, volunteers, and construction employees contributed to the building of our science lab. With that milestone, students should expect their science curriculum to be taught in their new school laboratory in the upcoming school year.

 
Challenge 

The hope is to fill our new school laboratory with microscopes, science textbooks and other school materials so that students can have a well-rounded science education. In order to do that we need to fund the backbone of the school: teachers, construction employees, and staff. Without them, the school cannot keep running and Centro Educativo Técnico Chixot will never be able to have its own science lab.


Solution

Teachers, construction employees and staff are the glue of Long Way Home. Supporting them means our students enjoy holistic education through experiential learning, a safe and environmentally friendly learning space, and a school that is organized to accommodate students and their families needs. By supporting the foundations of the school, students can get the best out of their education because we're able to provide unique opportunities as we hope to see with our science lab.


Long-term Solution

Building a laboratory will give 120+ students at Centro Educativo Técnico Chixot a space with the tools to explore science. The science lab will lead to a ripple effect of environmental justice, students' success and their community’s wellbeing. Our future vision is that with an in-depth science based curriculum, these students - our future teachers, doctors, and activists- will be the leaders and educators for a better and safer world starting in their own community.

Links:

• Come Build with Us!