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 over 170 communities in Guatemala to ensure our students overcome these, and other, barriers to accessing a quality education. To date, PoP has impacted over 221,819 lives in Guatemala.
BOCA COSTA REGION
The region of Boca Costa, located southeast of PoP’s Guatemala headquarters in Xela, is home to a more tropical climate than any of the other regions in Guatemala in which we work. PoP expanded to Boca Costa in early 2012, with our regional office located in Santo Tomás La Unión.
To date, we’ve built 80 schools in the region and have also provided our teacher training and educational programming to many PoP schools in the region.
Before a PoP School Build
Previously, the students of Caserio Tzamjuyup Aldea La Ceiba attended classes in provisional learning structures. Out of the 9 total classrooms making up the Caserio Tzamjuyup Aldea La Ceiba School, 6 were formal classrooms and the remaining 3 were provisional spaces. One of these provisional spaces was built by the community and made out of brick and wire. The other two provisional structures are made out of aging wood—these classrooms were dark, had no windows, low roofs and dirt floors. The lack of well constructed and formal classrooms for all students at the Caserio Tzamjuyup Aldea La Ceiba School was hindering student engagement and learning.
Your Impact with a New PoP School
You recognized that these conditions were not conducive to learning and responded by helping PoP and the Caserio Tzamjuyup Aldea La Ceiba community break ground on a new 3-classroom build. The Caserio Tzamjuyup Aldea La Ceiba members, parents and teachers fully supported the project and contributed up to 20 percent of the labor and resources necessary to complete the build. Your support made possible this 3-classroom build, complete with new whiteboards and teacher desks, which will immediately benefit 28 preprimary student and 42 3rd grade students. These classrooms were also equipped with new whiteboards and teacher desks. The entire Caserio Tzamjuyup Aldea La Ceiba community is so thankful for your support and the safe and strong structural foundation that will foster an environment of educational growth and promise for its students.
