Partnership with La Escuelita de Esperanza
Project Profile-
La Escuelita de Esperanza, founded in June of 2005, is an after-school arts and literacy program serving children in the impoverished community of Proyecto Cristal in San José, Costa Rica. Proyecto Cristal, a former squatters’ settlement located along the train tracks, is made up mostly of Nicaraguan immigrants. Children there go to school for only about three hours per day, and their parents generally work long hours for little pay, which means that there is often no one to offer supervision and help with homework when children arrive home from school. Generally speaking, most people in Proyecto Cristal do not graduate from high school, and many have not completed education past the third grade.
The Escuelita seeks to offer a safe space for children to play, learn, and get help and support with their homework. In addition, the Escuelita offers the only library in the area. The Escuelita offers two sessions per weekday, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, and serves about 120 children per week. Two women from Proyecto Cristal run the program, and the Escuelita also gratefully accepts both long-term and short-term volunteer help from abroad. To read more, go to http://sites.google.com/site/LaEscuelitaDeEsperanza
Partnership History
La Escuelita has been an Omprakash Partner since January, 2009.
Need for Material Resources-
La Escuelita de Esperanza can always use Spanish-language books, particularly picture books, as well as art supplies. Spanish-language picture books are not generally available in Costa Rica, and can be mailed relatively cheaply via media mail from the U.S. Please contact laescuelitadeesperanza@gmail.com for more information about sending in-kind gifts. However, it is possible to buy most things in Costa Rica, and the Escuelita is in need of funding in order to continue functioning and to complete some of its long-term goals.
Currently, it costs $700 for one month of programming at the Escuelita. Rent and utilities are $200, and the director, who is from Proyecto Cristal, receives a small stipend of $300; her assistant receives a stipend of $200. Volunteers from abroad are asked to raise their own funding.
La Escuelita de Esperanza currently operates out of a small rented house, and is in great need of a permanent facility. Such a facility would cost about $25,000 to build (a plot of land costs about $10,000), and would allow the Escuelita to realize some of its other long-term goals, such as a permanent program for adolescents, a lunch program, and a computer lab.
Need for Volunteers-
La Escuelita de Esperanza is always happy to receive volunteer help both from within Costa Rica and abroad. Competency in the Spanish language is extremely helpful, as most people in the community speak perhaps only a few words of English. If you have a bit of competency in Spanish and are looking to solidify your language skills while working with kids, this is a great place for you. Teachers are especially needed, particularly those with a background in English as a Second Language, art, and music education. However, such special skills are not necessary; if you enjoy working with children, you will be very much appreciated!
Both short-term and long-term volunteers are accepted. If space is available, the Escuelita does have one bed at the moment for volunteers. If space is not available, arrangement of a home stay in the community is possible, and there is a cheap, nice hostel a short, 40-cent bus ride away from the Escuelita.
Because Proyecto Cristal is located in a rugged, unpaved community on the side of a mountain, it is necessary for volunteers to be in good health and able to walk relatively long distances.
If you are interested in volunteering, please email laescuelitadeesperanza@gmail.com