Cangahua School Project
Confronting Poverty by Supporting Elementary Education in
Quito, Ecuador
School Location & History
The Cangahua School Project seeks to raise money and materials
for a private elementary school located in a poverty-stricken section of Quito,
Ecuador, called Cangahua Alto. The
scarcity of public schools, their substandard funding, and the frequency of
national education strikes make a private school like this one the only option
for many families.
The school, named “Juan Pablo I,” serves descendants of former hacienda serfs
from Cangahua, as well as residents of other poor neighborhoods located nearby,
such as Cooperative Jaime Roldós and Pisulí.
Many of the children live in single-parent households or with their
grandparents, if their parents have migrated to seek work abroad or are no
longer living. Most of the children are
of indigenous, African-American, and mixed cultural backgrounds.
The idea for the school was initiated in 1998 by a young woman
named Hilda Cárdenas who could not find a public school in Quito that would
admit her very intelligent, but physically disabled, child. Hilda mobilized her entire family to buy the
land and the small buildings located on it to create a school that would serve
the needs of area residents as well as those of her own child. The school’s doors were opened in August of
1999.
School hours are from 7:50-12:00 noon for 1st grade (kindergarten), and
7:20-12:30 p.m. for the older students.
What the School Has
The school is located on a dirt road that winds up above the
neighborhoods of El Condado and Cotocollao, located on the far northwest edge
of Quito.
It
has on Pre-Kinder class, and 2 classrooms each of grades 1-7.
Current Enrollment: ca. 500 students, with 25-33 in each class.
Tuition: US $15.00 to enroll and $10.00/month (Ecuador is on
the US dollar).
Uniform costs: $25 for the green and blue school sweater and
physical education warmups. The cost of shirts,
socks, and shoes is additional.
The school year 2007-2008 opened with two classrooms for each
grade up through grade seven, and one for pre-kindergarten. (The “first grade” in Ecuador corresponds to
kindergarten in the USA).
Fifteen full-time teachers are employed by the school; plus one
part-time English teacher, one physical education instructor, one secretary,
one janitor, and one guard. Teachers
make around $140 a month.
Although the neighborhood does not have running water or
sewers, the school obtained an easement to connect to another barrio’s water
and sewage facilities. The school has 5
toilets, three large sinks, and a small area where students can purchase school
supplies and candy (the only nutrition for some).
What the School Needs
· desks, blackboards, storage cabinets, &
bookshelves;
· school books (math $12; Spanish $4, English
$3 per student);
· didactic materials;
· computers and computer supplies;
· Internet access & data show capabilities;
· project supplies;
· televisions & VCRs;
· paint for the walls and for the desks that
are obtained second- (and third-) hand;
· scholarship funds;
· financial assistance for the poorest children
to pay for tuition, breakfast, photographs, and school uniforms.
· basic first aid supplies.
Contact Information
Whether you care to donate at this time or not, we would be
happy to put you on a mailing list if you would like to be sent information on
a periodic basis.
Please send donations and queries to:
Kathleen Fine-Dare, PhD
Byron Dare, PhD
1833 County Road 228
Durango, CO 81301
Please indicate if you would like your donation to go towards a
specific aspect of the school project.
We can be reached by e-mail at:
fine_k@fortlewis.edu
dare_b@fortlewis.edu
SCHOOL DIRECTOR:
Lcda. Hilda
Cárdenas Salazar de Barriga
B. Legarda y
Buenaventura Aguilera
Lote 073
Barrio San José de
Jarrín Bajo, Cotocollao
QUITO, ECUADOR (South America)
Thank You!
