Maranatha School educates the most impoverished children of Ouanaminthe, Haiti, where the government fails to provide free public education to all. Funds go to pay basic school expenses which are primarily materials, housing costs, and teacher salaries. We hope to raise enough to include school meals as many children are hungry, making it difficult for them to learn. Parents currently pay $5 per child per year and this is the only funds the school has to work with!
In Haiti, public schools are not enough to serve the population. Private schools are abundant, and there is a large percentage of youth that do not go to school at all, causing a high illiteracy rate in the population, which of course has an effect on the level at which society functions. We have seen the turmoil that this country has faced over the years and a route problem is the lack of education, and lack of high quality education that prepares youth to be problem solver and critical thinker
Providing funding to the school, which is in its fourth year of operation, will allow it to do what it is meant to do but currently struggles to do. Children bring their own chairs to school. Teachers work without chalk boards, chalk, or books. All classes meet in one large open room divided up into groups. Teachers struggle immensely and have to miss days when other work presents itself as they don't earn a salary for teaching. Providing funding for the school will solve all of these issues.
A community where children grow up uneducated and a community where children grow up with an education are immensely different places. The domestic violence and dysfunctional family practices decrease dramatically for one. People without education often do things that don't make sense and are not in their benefit due to their lack of understanding. This school which currently educates 135 students, will likely grow in the amount of students served, and have a transformative effect.
