UW Guatemala Project Statement

University of Washington Guatemala Project

This project, organized entirely at the initiative of students in the UW’s 2005 and 2006 Exploration Seminars to Guatemala, aims to support primary and secondary education in Guatemala’s coffee communities through a sustained commitment to youth empowerment. Designed in conjunction with the NGO Movimiento de Trabajadores Campesinos (Movement of Peasant Workers) in San Marcos, Guatemala, the project adopts an innovative, integral approach to education, recognizing that poor educational outcomes are not only a reflection of scarce funds for tuition, but also the frequent lack of community-based support for students. This project will empower young leaders from 6 coffee growing municipalities by engaging them in a regional support network and encouraging small-scale development projects of their own design:

6 promising young leaders will receive partial tuition scholarships, based on their demonstrated commitment to community development activities. (Scholarships are partial rather than full to provide incentive for students’ families to also invest in their children’s future; the goal is to reduce the burden of that investment on impoverished families, but not to supplant it altogether).
Scholarship recipients will participate in regional discussions to identify small-scale development projects that can provide sustainable economic benefits to their communities. These discussions will be facilitated by a mentor/adviser who will provide regular support for the scholarship recipients, advising them in both their academic studies and community development work. (One of the primary reasons students leave school is because they lack a support network of people who have completed schooling and can provide them the support they need to face its challenges).
Small-scale projects identified through this process will receive support in the form of micro-financing for supplies. For example, modest projects may be supported through a loan to purchase of sewing machines or thread.

In the wake of Hurricane Stan, which devastated this region of Guatemala in 2005, there has been a dramatic increase in emigration by teenagers and even younger children, who head north towards the United States to face an uncertain future. This project seeks to provide support for youth from the area to stay home and invest in their communities’ futures through education and leadership training. It also provides important engaged-learning opportunities for UW students interested in development and NGO work. At every stage, it is run by UW students, working in close consultation with Prof. Godoy and the MTC in Guatemala. All fundraising is carried out by UW students. Several students from last year’s Exploration Seminar are returning to Guatemala this summer to participate in the selection of scholarship recipients. This year’s Exploration Seminar students attended meetings of the regional youth leadership group to observe it in action. Students will administer the program as it evolves, as they have since its conception.

This project is made possible by the leadership of UW students and the generosity of the UW community. Students aim to raise $50,000, enabling the project to be established for at least ten years. Tax-deductible donations can be made by sending a check made out to “University of Washington Foundation,” with “Guatemala Project” written in the memo line, to Prof. Angelina Godoy, Box 353650, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-3650. Thank you!