You’re Making a Difference Here
GUATEMALA
In Guatemala, where over 50% of the population lives below the poverty line, socioeconomic status is one of the biggest barriers to accessing a quality education (World Bank 2013). The average length of schooling for a Guatemalan child is only 4 years and 24.1% of the population is illiterate (US Aid 2014; World Bank 2014).
Pencils of Promise works with 168 communities in Guatemala to ensure our students overcome these, and other, barriers to accessing a quality education. To date, PoP has impacted over 221,000 lives in Guatemala.
QUICHÉ REGION
Quiché is a mountainous region located in northwestern Guatemala. PoP’s base in Quiché is in the city of Nebaj, which is about five hours northeast of our Guatemala headquarters in Xela.
To date, we’ve built over 70 schools in the region and plan to continue to scale our builds, along with teacher training workshops, across Quiché.
Before the PoP School Build
Previously, the students of Caserio Arroyo de Leche attended school in a provisional structure made of styrofoam and exposed metal. The building was severely deteriorated, many of the walls and floors had large holes, and was at risk of collapsing. Aside from these structural issues, Caserio Arroyo de Leche also faced an issue with overcrowding due to a growth in size of the student population of the community. This, paired with the lack of teachers, prohibited individualized student attention and engagement. Further preventing student growth and development was the lack of proper school furniture that was available, leading to many students without access to desks or chairs.
Your Impact with the New PoP School
You recognized that these conditions were not conducive to learning and responded by helping PoP and the Caserio Arroyo de Leche community break ground on a new two-classroom school. Teachers, parents and community members were dedicated and committed to the project throughout the entire build process contributing up to 20 percent of resources and labor. This new school building is equipped with proper desks, chairs, blackboards, windows and doors, further ensuring a proper and safe education for all. The school’s inauguration in the fall of 2016 was a celebration for the entire Caserio Arroyo de Leche community.
