Levels of commitment are very encouraging. From 2005-2006 we lost only one student, and then unavoidably, when the family decided to move to another province. In the final examinations in 2005, which are externally graded, the average mark in Grade 1 was 80% (A grade) and in Grade 2 70.5% (B grade). Only 3 students in the school got average marks below 70% and each of these took their resits later in the year and passed.
In August 2005 the school was re-validated. In November, the Director, Eduardo Espel, received news from the Supervisor of the Ministry of Education that our school had been selected as one of the best educational establishments in Zone 5. We were congratulated on the progress we had made in just 2 years and received a special commendation for Academic Achievement and Pupil Behaviour. Given the background of many of our students this achievement is a remarkable testimony to the hard work and professionalism of our teachers.
In August 2005 the school was re-validated. In November, the Director, Eduardo Espel, received news from the Supervisor of the Ministry of Education that our school had been selected as one of the best educational establishments in Zone 5. We were congratulated on the progress we had made in just 2 years and received a special commendation for Academic Achievement and Pupil Behaviour. Given the background of many of our students this achievement is a remarkable testimony to the hard work and professionalism of our teachers.
During the annual summer competitions in 2005 which take place amongst all schools in Guatemala City students won gold medals and diplomas in the following fields: public speaking, art and theatre. In sport, the girls’ soccer team was the star turn (eclipsing even the boys who reached the semi-finals of the schools competition). The girls managed to get to the finals but, heartbreakingly, lost out on a penalty shoot out. Nevertheless, given the length of the competition and the number of teams that participated, this was a wonderful result. This year both the girls and boys soccer teams have reached the quarter-finals of their respective competitions and are looking good to make it all the way and win the final.
We should also mention that this year we opened our doors to an organization called CONALFA, the National Literary Committee of Guatemala. Throughout the year the school premises opened at the weekends as a centre for adult literacy. These were very well attended and provided an important facility for adult learners in Zone 5. The computers donated to us by Swansea City Council still provide a fantastic resource and are helping people at all levels to overcome the blight of illiteracy and educational need.
In May 2005 we were invited to a British Council reception by the ambassador, Richard Lavers. We need to maintain our links with the Embassy. We are the only British school in the City. For this reason we hope the Embassy will continue their interest in a practical way by creating a network to support our efforts..
In January we had discussions with the Director on budgets, student intake, resource management and long-term funding. These discussions were extremely valuable. What emerged from them was a strategic plan which allows us to monitor the progress of the school over the next 5 years and achieve the goal of sustainability. Issues such as accommodation remain critical. Currently we are choc-a-block and because of our growing reputation have been forced to turn students away. This is desperately sad but we do not have the room to expand indefinitely and maintain current academic standards. In the long term we aim to reduce our budget and increase our levels of financial support. If we do not, the hope of funding bigger premises is not realistic. At the moment rentals are high in Guatemala City. This is the nation’s capital and even in a deprived area such as ours the going rate is $500-$600 per month for a reasonably-sized property. Ideally, we would love to have a property of our own but unless we can secure a large donation this is unlikely to happen. Our primary objective remains the reduction of overall costs and an increased involvement by the local community in fundraising projects. The Director fully agrees with this.
In February 2006 we sent our first interns to the school – Robbie Cowbury and Laura Ousley, from London. They worked in the school from February to April teaching English, theatre studies and sports. From the reports we have received the work they did was hugely beneficial. According to the Director, neither the interns nor the students wanted the project to come to an end. We believe it is important to continue the programme. As a result, our proposed intern for 2007 is a graduate in Spanish and French from the University of Swansea.
Fundraising continues and remains our biggest domestic priority. St. Mary’s Rotary Club in Swansea was exceedingly generous in the support it gave us over the past eighteen months, as was Driffield School in Humberside. Since 2003 Driffield School has nominated Study Guatemala as their named charity and regularly hold fund raising discos and school events. In the future, we hope to begin a letter exchange scheme between the two schools. Special thanks to Julie Blencoe.
The charity has also received support from those who have named us as their preferred charity at Golden Weddings, funerals, birthdays and social events. Members of the Board and their families have promoted the charity with ‘Spanish Language days’, parachute jumps, marathons, coffee mornings and garden parties. In 2005 the Wigan Youth Jazz Orchestra held an outdoor concert on our behalf in The Galleries in Wigan. This was very successful in bringing our charity to the attention of the wider public. We also received support and donations from the Disabled Children’s Trust – North West Branch, in Wigan. We were also pleased to complete our film of the school, for which a huge thankyou should go to Peter Seel from the University of Colorado. Peter did a wonderful job of filming and editing. Copies are now available on DVD and video.
In November 2006 our first intake of students graduate from Liceo Britanico Guatemalteco. The thirty five students in Grade 3 will have completed three years in full-time secondary education. Throughout their time at the school these students have passed examinations and been awarded diplomas by the Ministry of Education. After November the students will move on into higher education or take up full-time or part-time employment in the city. It will be a testing time for all of them and we intend to monitor their progress carefully.
Overall, this has been a positive year for the charity. We have a minimum annual budget of £13,000 and are grateful to those of you who have worked hard to help us meet our targets. We remain as we started, a small, independent charity operating in an area of real need in an often forgotten part of the world. Guatemala City is a place of enormous deprivation where, ordinarily, children have very little chance of escaping the cycle of poverty into which they are born. Unlike some charities we do not levy an administration charge. All our work is voluntary. Every penny donated goes to the school. Of course we always need to increase our level of support and improve on our fundraising work. Lottery support and Comic Relief would be wonderful. We tried the former but the fact remains that it is extremely difficult to break through the stranglehold which the big charities have on theses organizations, especially at a time when so much attention seems to be on Africa and Asia. Brutally speaking, Guatemala is not the most fashionable country in the world to support. It is often regarded by donor agents as a back-burner country and a place that falls within an American sphere of influence. Back-burner or front-burner, however, it remains a place of desperate need – the city especially. Look at the Lonely Planet and Rough Guides. Read what they say in their publications: “The best thing about Guatemala City is still the bus station. Get out of there as fast as you can.” And so it goes.
We remain the only British-based, educational charity in Guatemala City and the only charity who offer the children a free education from ages 11-18. Many thanks for your continuing support. We really appreciate everything you’ve done.
We should also mention that this year we opened our doors to an organization called CONALFA, the National Literary Committee of Guatemala. Throughout the year the school premises opened at the weekends as a centre for adult literacy. These were very well attended and provided an important facility for adult learners in Zone 5. The computers donated to us by Swansea City Council still provide a fantastic resource and are helping people at all levels to overcome the blight of illiteracy and educational need.
In May 2005 we were invited to a British Council reception by the ambassador, Richard Lavers. We need to maintain our links with the Embassy. We are the only British school in the City. For this reason we hope the Embassy will continue their interest in a practical way by creating a network to support our efforts..
In January we had discussions with the Director on budgets, student intake, resource management and long-term funding. These discussions were extremely valuable. What emerged from them was a strategic plan which allows us to monitor the progress of the school over the next 5 years and achieve the goal of sustainability. Issues such as accommodation remain critical. Currently we are choc-a-block and because of our growing reputation have been forced to turn students away. This is desperately sad but we do not have the room to expand indefinitely and maintain current academic standards. In the long term we aim to reduce our budget and increase our levels of financial support. If we do not, the hope of funding bigger premises is not realistic. At the moment rentals are high in Guatemala City. This is the nation’s capital and even in a deprived area such as ours the going rate is $500-$600 per month for a reasonably-sized property. Ideally, we would love to have a property of our own but unless we can secure a large donation this is unlikely to happen. Our primary objective remains the reduction of overall costs and an increased involvement by the local community in fundraising projects. The Director fully agrees with this.
In February 2006 we sent our first interns to the school – Robbie Cowbury and Laura Ousley, from London. They worked in the school from February to April teaching English, theatre studies and sports. From the reports we have received the work they did was hugely beneficial. According to the Director, neither the interns nor the students wanted the project to come to an end. We believe it is important to continue the programme. As a result, our proposed intern for 2007 is a graduate in Spanish and French from the University of Swansea.
Fundraising continues and remains our biggest domestic priority. St. Mary’s Rotary Club in Swansea was exceedingly generous in the support it gave us over the past eighteen months, as was Driffield School in Humberside. Since 2003 Driffield School has nominated Study Guatemala as their named charity and regularly hold fund raising discos and school events. In the future, we hope to begin a letter exchange scheme between the two schools. Special thanks to Julie Blencoe.
The charity has also received support from those who have named us as their preferred charity at Golden Weddings, funerals, birthdays and social events. Members of the Board and their families have promoted the charity with ‘Spanish Language days’, parachute jumps, marathons, coffee mornings and garden parties. In 2005 the Wigan Youth Jazz Orchestra held an outdoor concert on our behalf in The Galleries in Wigan. This was very successful in bringing our charity to the attention of the wider public. We also received support and donations from the Disabled Children’s Trust – North West Branch, in Wigan. We were also pleased to complete our film of the school, for which a huge thankyou should go to Peter Seel from the University of Colorado. Peter did a wonderful job of filming and editing. Copies are now available on DVD and video.
In November 2006 our first intake of students graduate from Liceo Britanico Guatemalteco. The thirty five students in Grade 3 will have completed three years in full-time secondary education. Throughout their time at the school these students have passed examinations and been awarded diplomas by the Ministry of Education. After November the students will move on into higher education or take up full-time or part-time employment in the city. It will be a testing time for all of them and we intend to monitor their progress carefully.
Overall, this has been a positive year for the charity. We have a minimum annual budget of £13,000 and are grateful to those of you who have worked hard to help us meet our targets. We remain as we started, a small, independent charity operating in an area of real need in an often forgotten part of the world. Guatemala City is a place of enormous deprivation where, ordinarily, children have very little chance of escaping the cycle of poverty into which they are born. Unlike some charities we do not levy an administration charge. All our work is voluntary. Every penny donated goes to the school. Of course we always need to increase our level of support and improve on our fundraising work. Lottery support and Comic Relief would be wonderful. We tried the former but the fact remains that it is extremely difficult to break through the stranglehold which the big charities have on theses organizations, especially at a time when so much attention seems to be on Africa and Asia. Brutally speaking, Guatemala is not the most fashionable country in the world to support. It is often regarded by donor agents as a back-burner country and a place that falls within an American sphere of influence. Back-burner or front-burner, however, it remains a place of desperate need – the city especially. Look at the Lonely Planet and Rough Guides. Read what they say in their publications: “The best thing about Guatemala City is still the bus station. Get out of there as fast as you can.” And so it goes.
We remain the only British-based, educational charity in Guatemala City and the only charity who offer the children a free education from ages 11-18. Many thanks for your continuing support. We really appreciate everything you’ve done.
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