Empower Maya Youth in a Post-Genocide Community

The 2017 school year is off to a great start here in Chajul, Guatemala, and studies are well underway for our 70 middle and high school scholars. In the midst of it all, we would like to extend our sincere gratitude to you, our valued supporters, for your integral part in the work of Limitless Horizons Ixil. It is our pleasure to provide you with an update of the effect of your contributions to our Youth Development Program.

In January, we kicked off the new year with a meeting of all of our scholars and their parents in order to share goals and expectations of the 2017 school year. It was a lively day, full of excitement and anticipation, and we are thrilled by how committedeach of our parents are to support their children’s education. But most of all, we are ecstatic about our scholars’ commitment and dedication to continuing their studies. We are so proud of each of our students this year, both new and returning.

15 new first-year middle school scholars were also welcomed into the Limitless Horizons Ixil family this year. To prepare them for the demands of attending classes and studying in Spanish (their second language), they participated in Intensive Spanish I and II courses that we coordinated for them during their school break. We are proud to report that all students passed and are successfully integrated into their classes where instruction is exclusively in Spanish.

In the coming weeks, we’re excited to be further enhancing our tutoring services. Last year we offered our scholars 3 hours of academic assistance each week in Spanish, math, English, and general study habits. Now, in response to student needs, we will offer 6 hours per week, and we’re thrilled to be also covering science, social studies, and accounting. We’re confident that this will complement their education and boost their confidence in the classroom, making them more successful and eager learners over the long term.

Investing in human capital continues to be an integral part of maintaining high-quality programming to support our scholars’ education. To that end, 5 of our Guatemalan staff recently went to a workshop on effective instruction, hosted by our partner organization Starfish in Antigua, Guatemala. They received training on new participatory teaching methods to help students to better understand taught curriculum, which will aid them in their support of our scholars. They shared important takeaways with the director and teachers of our partner school, positively impacting future students as well.

Our youth continue to stay in school longer and earn better grades than their classmates who are not part of Limitless Horizons Ixil, and for this, we have you to thank. On behalf of all of our 70 scholars and their families, thank you for your contributions to empowering the youth of Chajul. Together we are creating change in Chajul, one generation at a time.

Thank you on behalf of all 70 Limitless Horizons Ixil scholars and their families!

The school year has come to a close in Guatemala and Limitless Horizons Ixil is celebrating another year full of accomplishments. Thanks to generous supporters like you, we are educating the future change-makers of the community. This year was full of many successes and we want to share them with you, our generous supporters who helped make them possible!

In regards to our alumni, 70% of our 2015 graduates are working, studying, or doing both! Two of our previous internship and training initiative participants, Salvador and Micaela, began university this year and are receiving scholarships from Limitless Horizons Ixil for successfully completing their internships. One of our current interns, Cecilia Jacinta, is studying as well. To further support our alumni once they graduate from our Youth Development Program, we invited our alumni group, Triunfadores Sin Límites (Limitless Achievers), to attend workshops focusing on professional and personal goal-setting and how to have a successful interview. We also invited a human resources specialist to work with our alumni to creating their resumes. Our alumni continue to make us very proud as they pursue their educational and professional goals!

This year we had 2 high school and 13 middle school graduates! We will continue working with our high school graduates by providing workshops on how to apply for jobs and create their resumes. All of our middle school graduates plan to continue with high school and pursue their technical degrees. Some scholars have already applied to schools both in and outside of Chajul to earn their degrees as bilingual secretaries, electricians, primary school educators, and computer specialists.

We provided 10 workshops for our youth and parents on topics including gender equality, teamwork, decision-making, positive communication, bullying, dating and relationships, nutrition, self-esteem, and leadership.

To get ready for next year, we have selected 15 highly motivated scholars who will start middle school in January 2017! Our incoming scholars are currently attending intensive Spanish language classes to prepare them for middle school. After the success of last year’s Intensive Spanish II, we offered this course again this year to our second year middle school scholars to continue improving their Spanish.

To celebrate all of the year’s successes, we took our scholars out for a day full of outdoor fun. Staff and scholars played sports, games, swam, and enjoyed the sunshine! We also held a graduation ceremony and invited all of our families to attend. There were skits, folk dances, contests, and of course, the distribution of diplomas!

Your continued support allows us to improve our services and expand our programs every year. You enable us to give youth the tools they need to be successful change-makers. Thank you for all you do for the youth of Limitless Horizons Ixil!