To bring education equality to Tzu'tujil Mayans

Aldea Maya has been working with Tzu'tujil Mayans in the Lake Atitlan area of Guatemala since 2007. We started by sponsoring students to attend elementary school. We  have continued to help  students as they finished middle and high school.

We presently have 21 students in university. They are studying: agricultural engineering, social work, business administration, law, systems engineering, mathematics, physics, lab technician, Xray technician, education administration, accounting, and education.

When we started this education program 14 years ago we did not have anyone to tutor our students. Most of our students parents had not gone to school and many did not even speak Spanish. This has now changed drasticaly, as we have our 21 university students playing it forward and helping our elementary, middle and high school students. We are even tutoring some of our university students. For example we have Antonio in first year systems engineering. He is being tutored on basic computer programing by Pedro who is in fifth year systems engineering. And he is being tutored in calculus by Marvin who is working on completing his Masters in Mathematics and Physics.

These university students have worked together to develop and coordinate a quite amazing tutoring program. They work several hours a week with the students for free as they want to help others to become successful. Talk about paying it forward and a full circle experience.

This is an exciting time of year when we get see see a new group of students graduate from high school and make plans for their future.

We have 9 graduates this year and 7 of them plan on continuing into university or the trades. Two plan on becoming lawyers, one is going into nursing while we have another whose goal is to be a system engineer. We have a student whose chosen career is accountant and another wants a future with a business administration degree. Our one trades career will be as a baker.

We started the middle school in 2012 in the village of Chuk Muk because no one was continuing their education past grade 6. It is wonderful to see the students in the village get the opportunity to grow and blossum. They now have big dreams and really have the possibility to help their family and village break the cycle of abject poverty. 

These students will then start to volunteer in our learning centre helping elementary, middle and high school students excel. We will now have 21 university students participating in this pay it forward program. In the learning centre we offer free internet , computers, library books and tutoring to anyone in the village.

It is why our motto is " Fostering Hope"

It has definitely been very challenging for the students who have continued to study during the COVID-19 pandemic. The elementary, middle and high schools were set to reopen when the Delta variant made its presence know in the Santiago Atitlan area. The students have returned to receiving their courses on handouts.

We have set up tutoring in our learning centre. This program is being coordinated by our university students. One tutor will run the course and two others will assist the students. We have been running courses in mathematics, physics, accounting, Engliah and Spanish. For many students this is the only way they can understand the homework packages they have been receiving.

The elementary students will need help with the basics if they do not have an older brother or sister that went to school. The parents usually cannot help as they cannot read or write and did not attend school.

All the students are using the computers in our learning centre and free internet to help with their assignments.

Several of the high school students have chosen to continue their studies at a trade school, INTECAP. The cost of these programs would be prohibitive without financial support. The cost of the actual course is not expensive. However the cost of transportation, materials and supplies is huge.

The cost to get from Chuk Muk to Solola is $10 a day. Luckily another organization is giving free accomodation close to the college to all the Chuk Muk students that study on multiple days. Otherwise the transportation costs would kill the possibilty before it even became close to being a reality.

We have one student, Tomas, studying car mechanics. It is a 3 year course which runs 5 days a week. We have had to supply all the extensive mechanics tools which cost well over $2000. In addition we have had to pay for car engines and parts. We are however totally impressed with the amazing program being run at INTECAP and know that when Tomas graduates he will be a competent mechanic with many job opportunities.

Another student, Jacobo, is studying to be a pastry chef. This is only a one year program but it is 3 days a week. Like the mechanics program the cost of kitchen equipment has been exorbitant, However the skills that Jacobo is aquiring are impressive.

The students are loving the trade school experience and next year we plan on expanding our Trade School scholarship program and have students studying to be a seamstress/tailor and to be a baker.

As 2020 draws to an end we are happy to be able to share the fantastic news that 5 of our sponsor students are graduating university this year. We thought we would honour each student by telling their story.

The one common denominator to all the students is that they would not have continued past grade 6 without the Chuk Muk middle school that Aldea Maya started in 2012. Four out of these 5 students were in our first graduating class.

Miriam 

We first met Miriam in 2007 when we visited the Panabaj refugee camp after the Oct 2005 mudslide that killed hundreds. Miriam was one of the first students who got sponsored along with her sister.

In 2011, the family moved to the new village of Chuk Muk. Miriam's sister did not continue her education after elementary school and got married young and started a family. Miriam wanted to continue in school, however her father did not want this. It actually took us 3 hours to convince her papa to let Miriam go to middle school. Families do not always see the benefit of education.  Miriam  has graduated university with a education degree and is so excited for her future.

Juana Maria 

We started sponsoring Juana Maria in her last year of middle school in 2014, she was the top female student in her year. Juana Maria and Miriam both went to the high school that specializes in education.

Juana Maria studied Special Education at University de Valle. She is really hoping to help those that struggle in school and has also been learning sign language. Valle University is over 2 hours away and requires the students to take a truck ride to the lake, cross the lake by boat which takes around 40 minutes, walk a mile, then take 2 buses to the university. It cost over $10 for the round trip. She studied on Saturdays for 3 years.

The 2 Diego's

Diego R and Diego S both come from single mom families and are the oldest sibling. This puts a ton of pressure on them to support their families. We are putting them together as they both studied Physical Education at Valle University. This program is a 3 days a week course and is very, very expensive. We could not afford this course. Luckily there was a scholarship opportunity which paid a good percentage. Both boys were successfully in receiving a partial scholarship.

Both Diego's are excited about getting good jobs and helping their family flourish.

Pedro I

We first got to know Pedro when he was chosen to participate in our extracurricular art classes in 2014.Pedro was sponsored by another organization that focuses on elementary education. He was not sponsored for high school. Aldea Maya picked up Pedro as a sponsor student as he was a helpful teenager who loved to study and was the top student for grade 9. Pedro studied accounting in high school and has just completed an associate degree in Business Administration. Pedro will be continuing to study to get his full degree. Pedro is already working in administration for the Chuk Muk middle school.