Access to High School in Honduran Coffee Mountains

Dear friends of educate.,

This week we are preparing for the launch of our 2023 high school scholarship programme here in Trinidad, Honduras. This year we will be doubling our number of students from 10 to 20, and expanding on our Saturday programmes at our newly inaugurated Youth Center – so there is great growth ahead!

Meet some of our new scholars for 2023!

This week we visited Yosselin, Lucio and Wilson – three of our new schoalrship students for the 2023 school year - in the village of El Limón. When new scholars enter our programme, part of what we do is visit their families. Supporting rural education is a group effort, and families play an enormous role in ensuring their children can continue their studies. Getting to know our scholars families and where they live also means we can accompany our scholars with a greater understanding of their challenges.

To get to high school in Trinidad, Yosselin, Lucio and Wilson have to take a mototaxi from their village to the River Ulua, which they cross by canoe, as the bridge was swept away but the hurricanes in 2020. From there they walk to the main road to catch a bus to Trinidad. When they come home from school in in the evenings, they often have to cross the river in the dark. In the rainy season, when the river grows too much to cross safely, they have to take a longer route by mototaxi to reach a point where there is a bridge they can cross safely.

All three students are entering their last year of highschool, and we’re proud to be supporting young people with such dedication and passion for their studies!

Starting the year with our new Youth Center

In November 2022, we officially inaugurated our Youth Centre in partnership with the municipality of Trinidad. This center will be the basis of all of our operations going forwards, providing both a public municipal library as well as a space to bring our scholars together for weekly trainings and activities. Through this new center we plan to provide a space for our scholars and other young people to gather for educational workshops, leadership programmes, community engagement activities, and peer-to-peer mentorship and tutoring.

The inauguration was an incredibly special day, the culmination of over a year of hard work with so many individuals involved. At the inauguration we were joined by representatives from the local municipality and the National Library Network of Honduras, and two of our scholars – Robin Ariel and Cleverson Daniel – shared their experiences in the scholarship programme, while a third – Nely Mahely – read aloud a poem. After the programme ended, teachers in the audience got up to speak about the impact that educate.‘s school-based libraries have had for them and their students. Now open six days a week to the public, the Youth Center is a place where anyone from Trinidad or the surrounding areas can come and use the space and take out books. What’s more, we now have a basis for our growing scholarship programme to continue bringing our students together every week, and other youth have access to a space to come to study, read, learn and gather. We are so excited for all of the activities this space will open up!

Our 2022 Impact Assessments: Reflecting on the First Year of the High School Schoalrship Programme

2022 was the first year we offered high school scholarships in addition to our university programme. At the end of the first year, we reflected with our scholars on the impact of the programme and how to continue to improve. Among the benefits of studying at high school, students noted that it will help them achieve better-paying jobs, it supports their personal growth, they get to meet new people and make friends, become better communicators, have greater hope for their futures, be an example for their siblings, stay away from bad influences, and have fun. Several students also noted that, beyond simply going to school, the scholarship programme itself had also helped them build stronger connections and support one another, as they travelled to and from school every day as a group and spent Saturdays together at the Youth Center. Several students also said their families supported them in their education more now that they have this scholarship, as it releases the economic burden on the family and makes it easier for them to support their children in receiving a high school education.

Some of our scholars, despite being a few years away from graduating high school, are beginning to think about attending university as an option, if they continue in the programme.

When asked whether he would like to continue in the programme next year, Cleverson said: “Of course, how could I give up an opportunity like this?”

We continue to be driven by a deep belief in the power of young people to drive long-lasting change in their communities. This scholarship programme makes it possible not only for young people to continue their education in adverse circumstances, but to also receive training in leadership and global citizenship so that they can grow into the leaders their communities need.

Your support makes this vision possible, and we are so grateful.

Wishing you all the best,

Antonia

Dear friends of educate.,

We are very pleased to share another progress report about our High School Scholarship programme! 

Each Saturday, our ten high school scholars have been gathering at the Youth Centre with our project coordinator Walter, working on projects such as cleaning out the rooms, inventorying the existing books, and painting stunning murals across the walls! These activities are a core part of their scholarship, allowing students to act as leaders within broader community initiatives.   

The Centre’s inauguration is planned for late November, just prior to the local celebration of the Chimineas Gigantes (the Giant Chimenys), where great artistic sculptures are built, painted, and then set on fire in the streets. Founded by a local theatre group over 20 years ago, the Chimineas festivities celebrate the Conception of the Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus. During these festivities, we will be hosting a local fundraiser in the form of an art exhibition in the Youth Centre, which will then travel around the country with 100% of sales going towards our scholarship programme.

We would love to introduce you to some of our high school scholars who are involved in leading this project to fruition:

• Robin: Robin is 20 years old and is a very positive young man who is excited about the opportunity to continue his high school education. His family, he says, are very united. He lives with his grandparents, mother, stepfather and two older sisters and younger brother. They are a family of jewellery makes, producing artisanal bracelets and necklaces.
• Rosa: Rosa lives with her mother and father and her two brothers. Her family make and sell hammocks. Rosa works as an assistant in a Kindergarten in the village of Ilama in the mornings, and in the afternoons she attends her classes in Trinidad at the Santiago Perez Technical and Vocational Institute. In her free time, she likes to focus on her studies. Her dream is to graduate from high school and become a qualified Preschool teacher.
• Gerson: Gerson is 23 and lives with his family, who dedicate themselves to making hammocks. He is an energetic young man and a lover of football, which he tried to pursue professionally before becoming injured. He now sees furthering his education as an important step for his future. Nevertheless, he continues to train as part of a local team alongside his studies and helping his mother around the house.

In a country deeply affected by political and social crises, we continue to believes in the power of young people to drive long-lasting change in their communities. We hope that this Youth Centre will become a basis for strong future growth in the region, both with our expanding scholarship programme as well as for our school-based community library initiatives. Your support makes this vision possible, and we are so grateful.

With appreciation,

Antonia

Links:

• Meet some of our High School Scholars in this recent blog!