The School Year Begins

The Honduran school year begins sometime in February, so the Estancia has been a lot more lively than the past few months. During January, the last month of school vacation, I introduced the students to some board games and puzzles that my parents had brought from the states. At first the puzzles especially were very hard for the students and they needed a lot of help, but after time they came to love all of the games. They now love to teach each other and sometimes choose to play a game over having recess in the hot mid-day sun.

This school year the Estancia administrator had proposed that we limit the number of students to about 20 students in order to give them more individualized care and to ease discipline problems. Little by little the number kept growing, and now we are nearing 30 students.

Three years ago when the program started, the school administrator (who at the time was involved through college internship/field placement) went around town and rounded up students who did not go to school, and many who had never been to school. To go to school in the US, each students needs to go to school prepared with school supplies and a lunch every day (or gets the lunch through government assistance). In Honduras, each student needs not only school supplies, but a uniform as well (complete with appropriate shoes). The costs of the uniform and school supplies for a few kids can add up to the monthly wages of a blue collar worker (cleaning people, cooks). So if a family can’t provide the school supplies and uniform to their children, the kids don’t get to go to school. In some situations these children even work, selling food or trinkets, shining shoes, or even begging. The Estancia is a public school that serves children who might not otherwise be able to go to school.

Recently a woman went by the school, after the roster had been turned into the district school office, and asked us to accept her four children. The daughter, 14, was the only one who had ever been to school (presumably because the parents could only afford to send one child). The three sons, ages 7, 9, and 11, had never been in school and would be in first grade together. We accepted them, leaving us with a very full school. There are other cases that we decided not to accept because the families did not demonstrate enough need. This case, however, seemed worth trying to raise the necessary funds to feed four more students.

In addition to the growing number of students, we are facing a teacher shortage. We only have one teacher for about 30 kids grades K-6. Monday I have a meeting with the superintendent, but this problem has existed as long as the project, so I am not too hopeful. There are many reasons why the district hesitates to give us teachers. For one, money. We are not the only school that merits an additional teacher. On Tuesday I visited a school in the mountains that had 50 students per teacher and classroom. In Danli, there is an excess of qualified teachers, but not enough money to pay them to work. Teaching is a very highly-paid profession here, so it is hard to find money in the budget to pay more teachers. A second reason is rumors. Teachers hear that the Estancia is chaos, that the students are rough children brought in from the streets of Danli. This is true in a way, it is a “hard school”, but the teachers would benefit from having fewer students whom they could truly get to know and influence on a very personal level. A third reason is rumors; rumors that the Estancia has money from the states and that the school doesn’t need the community’s support (financially and in terms of service/outreach). The neighborhood sees me go there almost ever day and sees the medical brigades that come about twice a year, and they assume that the school isn’t needy at all.

Well there is hope yet. I have the upcoming meeting with the superintendent to look forward to, and our treasurer is currently seeking more funds from the mayor. The city hall helped start the program a few years ago but has not once increased their support despite inflation. Hopefully there will be enough money for the staff to get a few raises and maybe even an additional staff member to compensate for the fact that I will not be able to work their full-time. The last PC Volunteer at the Estancia was there every day and had a shift, but I cannot do that because of other commitments and continued PC support in that way will not help the program become sustainable.