Review
The last year for Study Guatemala and El Liceo Britanico Guatemalteco has been one of consolidation and continuation to achieve academic excellence and offer free access to education for those children with most limited resources.
The last year for Study Guatemala and El Liceo Britanico Guatemalteco has been one of consolidation and continuation to achieve academic excellence and offer free access to education for those children with most limited resources.
Given the enormous effort that had gone into raising funds to achieve the build of the school, the board of Trustees reviewed their approach going forward, to move into a more financial self sustaining and secure future.
It was together with our inspirational Chairman Phil Melling, that the Charities purpose and objectives were redefined in July 2011; Study Guatemala would now support only a defined number of students, guarantying their free education. Together with our director Eduardo Estrada, we agreed that for the three years to follow, we would assure funding of 35 students, a number to be reviewed should income permit this
Study Guatemala now supports a defined number of students, 35, on 100% grants, thereby guaranteeing their free education and allowing the school itself to focus on further developments locally. When we reviewed our plan, we agreed that should more funds become available we would then explore the possibility of funding more students. At the present time, however, we have remained focused upon these 35 students. With some small additional income, we have been able to offer support for some minor developments to the fabric of the building – including improvements to the toilets and to the rooftop space.
In spite of the great gap left by Phil Melling's very sad death, the Trustees are pleased to report that El Liceo Britanico Guatelamalteco continues to thrive and produce excellent support for those in most need of financial support to undertake their education.
Objectives and activities
Building upon the previous developments, the achievements of the school have continued to be outstanding.
Trustees plans
The trustees have reviewed the past year and the continued progress of the school and its students with much pleasure. Whilst recognizing this is a very challenging time financially for the Charity, and for Guatemala, we feel that the progress and outcomes have reflected the very solid base upon which Study Guatemala was established - the integrity of its objectives remaining very much intact.
The strategy that those pupils not supported by Study Guatemala should make some financial contribution to their education has indeed enabled the school to flourish and make great achievements.
In our annual report of 2012, we had shared the plan for supporters to sponsor individual students. As yet we have failed to achieve this closer link between out supporters and individual children, but it is, however, something that we intend to achieve over the forthcoming year.
Finances and Fundraising plans
The financial support we receive has been really valuable. As well as individual donations, we have been very lucky to have the support of the Open Shaw Trust. These donations, which are in addition to the regular financial contributions from our supporters, have made a significant impact to the school.
The Board of Trustees are very proud of the fact that we can report 100% of all donations goes directly to the school. We trust that this should make you, the supporters, confident that your donations make a huge difference to the lives of children and their families.
We are embarking on a new phase of fundraising and looking forward to new activities which may bring in more income. We welcome any support in this, but especially wanted to tell you of an “auction of promises” to come later this spring. We will be circulating the promises to be auctioned, in the event that you have any interest in any of the lots. If you or your friends and family are able to raise any funds for Study Guatemala, or can alert us to any additional funding opportunities, we would be most grateful.
Finally, we are again reviewing the cost of supporting individual students, which last year we fixed at £20 a month. Given the high cost of living we know that this is very tight, and would welcome any small additional contributions that you might be able to make to help us tackle this challenge.
We have a Just giving site to the project in the event that any supporters wish to use this.
Individual Case Studies
We ask Eduardo, the Director of the school, to provide us with an outline profile of the pupils we support, and three of these are described below. They typify the difficult background circumstances of our pupils, but equally exemplify the way in which the pupils take advantage of the opportunities offered by the support from Study Guatemala.
Ismar Joel Galindo Gramajo- 14 years
Ismar lives with his parents in very difficult circumstances. His mother lost her sight following a fall, leaving his father, previously working as a professional, unable to continue in his position, having to care for his wife for much of the time. This has been their position for the past two years.
This leaves the family with very limited resources, in a very poor area, where they have insufficient money to basic existence. Joel has received a grant for the past two years, with the most support this last year. In the holidays of school in 2012, Joel worked to enable the family to have sufficient income for their costs. He worked as a vegetable seller in the daytime, and at night, he worked alongside his father as a waiter at festivals and receptions. The family is very poor and have only the minimum food.
Ismar is devoted to his education, gaining the place at the top of his year for his achievements and behavior - he was honoured and awarded for this by el collegio and received great acclaim.
Isam loves to cook and has taken opportunities to cook food that can be sold. Because of their extremely difficult circumstances, the family was on the point of ceasing his education and it was only for the help from his grant that he was able to continue. He is a very intelligent and studious young man, with great potential. Last year he undertook a course in public speaking, oratory which enabled him to represent the school in a number of public events, including the National Festival for the office of human rights.
Possibly the highlight for Ismar Joel in the past year has been his contact with the British Embassy. He, with other students, participated in a drawing competition for the Embassy, where amongst 80 paintings were submitted. A great achievement for El Liceo was when they gained first and second places, Ismar being awarded second place. This led to him being invited to the Embassy for lunch with his co-student, where they feasted with the Guatemalan Olympic athletes. For Ismar this was an unforgettable experience – eating and having his photo taken with Ambassador is something he was thrilled to be part of.
Sara Noemi Mezquita Acevedo – 13 years old
Sara is a very bright girl who has achieved many accolades from El Liceo for her achievements. She has been at the school for two years being brought by her mother originally, in secret, because her father refused to allow her to continue in school: He stated that education was “only worthwhile for boys” and refused the funds for her to go to school. As a result of her attending school, her father refused to support her mother at all and Sara has had no contact with him. In spite of the many difficulties that she has faced as a consequence of attending school, she has achieved greatly, and is both delightful and very studious.
Delmili Paola Moran Panadero – 13 years
Delmili is the youngest of all her siblings and lives with her father. Her parents separated as her father has a problem with alcohol. However her mother met another partner, who began to abuse her, and because of this she chose to go to her father. Her father has since ceased to use alcohol and is now working, however with very limited income. This small unit has since been joined by Delmili’s brother and when understanding the difficulties they faced, left his studies to help with the family. Both are committed to support Delili with her studies, She is a very sweet child, loving the social interaction she gets from school. She is also a talented artist and loves to paint and draw.
Conclusion
The school continues to thrive and grow. Having moved into a new phase has been challenging for all who support the Charity, however we are delighted with the progress that has been made.
Study Guatemala’s inception, was largely due to the dream of Phil Melling, and his belief that a vision of such enormity, was achievable. We have missed him greatly over the past year, with his very sad death,
The board of Trustees continues to work to do justice to all that Phil helped us to achieve, and feel that we are moving to a very positive position where the goal of self sustainability will become a reality. The students as ever are committed to their education and highly value all that is offered.
At this time of annual reporting the trustees, Director and all the students, wish to express their huge appreciation of all that Phil has brought to fruition. Reflecting on the year and the students who benefit from the Charity, we continue to celebrate the great achievements, and the huge difference that Phil Melling especially, has made to the lives of many. We will be introducing this year the “Phil Melling” award for one boy and one girl, to celebrate and remember his contribution.
None of these achievements would have been possible without your fantastic support, and the Trustees wish to share their thanks.
We are looking forward to the year ahead, and anticipate much to celebrate over the next twelve months.
Jane Aitman
Sue Melling
Study Guatemala
It was together with our inspirational Chairman Phil Melling, that the Charities purpose and objectives were redefined in July 2011; Study Guatemala would now support only a defined number of students, guarantying their free education. Together with our director Eduardo Estrada, we agreed that for the three years to follow, we would assure funding of 35 students, a number to be reviewed should income permit this
Study Guatemala now supports a defined number of students, 35, on 100% grants, thereby guaranteeing their free education and allowing the school itself to focus on further developments locally. When we reviewed our plan, we agreed that should more funds become available we would then explore the possibility of funding more students. At the present time, however, we have remained focused upon these 35 students. With some small additional income, we have been able to offer support for some minor developments to the fabric of the building – including improvements to the toilets and to the rooftop space.
In spite of the great gap left by Phil Melling's very sad death, the Trustees are pleased to report that El Liceo Britanico Guatelamalteco continues to thrive and produce excellent support for those in most need of financial support to undertake their education.
Objectives and activities
Building upon the previous developments, the achievements of the school have continued to be outstanding.
- The number of students attending is now 181 in total, 81 girls and 100 boys
- The measures of success continue to be evidenced through very high academic achievements. Of the total students, 85.5% achieved passes at the conclusion of this academic year. 82 boys and 71 girls. There are a number of children who completed their studies but needed to undertake resits in order to progress to the next year: those results are awaited, but it is expected the overall pass rate will be 93%. Once again the primary reason for those not achieving successful outcomes is the difficult circumstances in which they live, and the impact this has upon all aspects of their lives.
- Of the 35 students on grants from Study Guatemala, 34 graduated, 1 student did not complete her education. This was Heydey whose mother had been murdered early in 2011. There had been great concern for her psychological wellbeing, Ultimately this proved to be too difficult for her, and she chose to cease her studies.
- Three of the 35 students supported by Study Guatemala achieved awards for the their high academic achievements
- The school band continues to maintain a significant role in the community; they receive invitations to play in various venues and continue to enter different competitions: they have received 6 Trophy’s and many Diploma’s as well as other recognition from the Communities in which they play. Should we achieve extra income the band sorely need help with instruments which we will endeavor to support.
- The theatre group has grown in the last year, performing most notably in an event for the office of Human Rights hosted in the Theatre of “Bellas Artes” . They received many commendations for this activity, and El Liceo Britanico Guatemalteco gained much from the event. The play performed was titled “the stigmas of God”, written by the Director Eduardo Estrada. This theme particularly looked upon the issues in Guatemala of religion, diversity and the discrimination of some groups - a very real challenge in Guatemala given its cultural and religious mix.
- Sporting activities continue to go from strength to strength, and with the support of an ex student, (now a teacher in Physical Education) the school has made particular strides in basket ball and football.
Trustees plans
The trustees have reviewed the past year and the continued progress of the school and its students with much pleasure. Whilst recognizing this is a very challenging time financially for the Charity, and for Guatemala, we feel that the progress and outcomes have reflected the very solid base upon which Study Guatemala was established - the integrity of its objectives remaining very much intact.
The strategy that those pupils not supported by Study Guatemala should make some financial contribution to their education has indeed enabled the school to flourish and make great achievements.
In our annual report of 2012, we had shared the plan for supporters to sponsor individual students. As yet we have failed to achieve this closer link between out supporters and individual children, but it is, however, something that we intend to achieve over the forthcoming year.
Finances and Fundraising plans
The financial support we receive has been really valuable. As well as individual donations, we have been very lucky to have the support of the Open Shaw Trust. These donations, which are in addition to the regular financial contributions from our supporters, have made a significant impact to the school.
The Board of Trustees are very proud of the fact that we can report 100% of all donations goes directly to the school. We trust that this should make you, the supporters, confident that your donations make a huge difference to the lives of children and their families.
We are embarking on a new phase of fundraising and looking forward to new activities which may bring in more income. We welcome any support in this, but especially wanted to tell you of an “auction of promises” to come later this spring. We will be circulating the promises to be auctioned, in the event that you have any interest in any of the lots. If you or your friends and family are able to raise any funds for Study Guatemala, or can alert us to any additional funding opportunities, we would be most grateful.
Finally, we are again reviewing the cost of supporting individual students, which last year we fixed at £20 a month. Given the high cost of living we know that this is very tight, and would welcome any small additional contributions that you might be able to make to help us tackle this challenge.
We have a Just giving site to the project in the event that any supporters wish to use this.
Individual Case Studies
We ask Eduardo, the Director of the school, to provide us with an outline profile of the pupils we support, and three of these are described below. They typify the difficult background circumstances of our pupils, but equally exemplify the way in which the pupils take advantage of the opportunities offered by the support from Study Guatemala.
Ismar Joel Galindo Gramajo- 14 years
Ismar lives with his parents in very difficult circumstances. His mother lost her sight following a fall, leaving his father, previously working as a professional, unable to continue in his position, having to care for his wife for much of the time. This has been their position for the past two years.
This leaves the family with very limited resources, in a very poor area, where they have insufficient money to basic existence. Joel has received a grant for the past two years, with the most support this last year. In the holidays of school in 2012, Joel worked to enable the family to have sufficient income for their costs. He worked as a vegetable seller in the daytime, and at night, he worked alongside his father as a waiter at festivals and receptions. The family is very poor and have only the minimum food.
Ismar is devoted to his education, gaining the place at the top of his year for his achievements and behavior - he was honoured and awarded for this by el collegio and received great acclaim.
Isam loves to cook and has taken opportunities to cook food that can be sold. Because of their extremely difficult circumstances, the family was on the point of ceasing his education and it was only for the help from his grant that he was able to continue. He is a very intelligent and studious young man, with great potential. Last year he undertook a course in public speaking, oratory which enabled him to represent the school in a number of public events, including the National Festival for the office of human rights.
Possibly the highlight for Ismar Joel in the past year has been his contact with the British Embassy. He, with other students, participated in a drawing competition for the Embassy, where amongst 80 paintings were submitted. A great achievement for El Liceo was when they gained first and second places, Ismar being awarded second place. This led to him being invited to the Embassy for lunch with his co-student, where they feasted with the Guatemalan Olympic athletes. For Ismar this was an unforgettable experience – eating and having his photo taken with Ambassador is something he was thrilled to be part of.
Sara Noemi Mezquita Acevedo – 13 years old
Sara is a very bright girl who has achieved many accolades from El Liceo for her achievements. She has been at the school for two years being brought by her mother originally, in secret, because her father refused to allow her to continue in school: He stated that education was “only worthwhile for boys” and refused the funds for her to go to school. As a result of her attending school, her father refused to support her mother at all and Sara has had no contact with him. In spite of the many difficulties that she has faced as a consequence of attending school, she has achieved greatly, and is both delightful and very studious.
Delmili Paola Moran Panadero – 13 years
Delmili is the youngest of all her siblings and lives with her father. Her parents separated as her father has a problem with alcohol. However her mother met another partner, who began to abuse her, and because of this she chose to go to her father. Her father has since ceased to use alcohol and is now working, however with very limited income. This small unit has since been joined by Delmili’s brother and when understanding the difficulties they faced, left his studies to help with the family. Both are committed to support Delili with her studies, She is a very sweet child, loving the social interaction she gets from school. She is also a talented artist and loves to paint and draw.
Conclusion
The school continues to thrive and grow. Having moved into a new phase has been challenging for all who support the Charity, however we are delighted with the progress that has been made.
Study Guatemala’s inception, was largely due to the dream of Phil Melling, and his belief that a vision of such enormity, was achievable. We have missed him greatly over the past year, with his very sad death,
The board of Trustees continues to work to do justice to all that Phil helped us to achieve, and feel that we are moving to a very positive position where the goal of self sustainability will become a reality. The students as ever are committed to their education and highly value all that is offered.
At this time of annual reporting the trustees, Director and all the students, wish to express their huge appreciation of all that Phil has brought to fruition. Reflecting on the year and the students who benefit from the Charity, we continue to celebrate the great achievements, and the huge difference that Phil Melling especially, has made to the lives of many. We will be introducing this year the “Phil Melling” award for one boy and one girl, to celebrate and remember his contribution.
None of these achievements would have been possible without your fantastic support, and the Trustees wish to share their thanks.
We are looking forward to the year ahead, and anticipate much to celebrate over the next twelve months.
Jane Aitman
Sue Melling
Study Guatemala
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