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 174 communities in Guatemala to ensure our students overcome these, and other, barriers to accessing a quality education. To date, PoP has impacted over 222,000 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 5 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, as well as our programmatic work, across Quiché.
Before the PoP School Build
Previously, the pre and primary students of Comunidad El Lirio Putul attended classes in an aging structure made of corrugated metal sheets with a dirt floor. There was also a brick classroom that the community built, with a low roof and dirt floors, but overcrowding was an issue. Additionally, the two latrines were not enough for the 67 students who attended the school. The lack of formal classrooms with proper construction, ventilation and furniture was hindering student engagement and learning.
Your Impact with the New PoP School
You recognized that these conditions were not conducive to learning and responded by helping PoP and Comunidad El Lirio Putul community complete construction of a new 2-classroom school. Teachers, parents and community members remained dedicated and committed to the project throughout construction, contributing 20 percent of crucial resources and labor to the build effort. This new school building provides dedicated classrooms for pre-primary and Primary 1-3, relieving the teachers and students of the overcrowding issue and enabling the growth and development for all students. In addition, the students in grades Primary 4-6 now have the opportunity to attend school in newly repaired classrooms. Three new washrooms and a hand-washing station were also constructed during the build, improving the health and hygiene conditions at the school.