Finca Alta Gracia
School for disadvantaged girls, Dominican Republic
Finca Alta Gracia School
As of July 2020, together with the local Mariposa Foundation, we were ready to open a school for about 60 children in the rural village of Los Maranitos in Dominican Republic. The village is a small tight-knit community of about 200 people where electricity is inconsistent, water is scarce and half of the population is under 18.
There is only a one-room schoolhouse that goes up to third grade. The next closest public school after the third grade is a 2-mile walk in mountainous terrain and takes 45 minutes. When it rains or the weather is inclement, the children cannot make the walk and often miss many days of school. The long walk and the inadequate standard of education make many of the children stop their schooling after third grade.
For several years, the Mariposa Foundation has demonstrated its success in educating girls in the town of Cabarete and was now ready to replicate its model in the rural community, when COVID happened.
Lockdown in all of Dominican Republic, including schools
However, as soon as the government let us, we will open the school to support girls and help them break the cycle of generational poverty through education.
In the meantime, we have used the time for some teacher training and some workshops for the children (all within the rules for the pandemic).
Both the children, the community at large, the Mariposa Foundation and Future4Children can hardly wait until we are allowed to open the school 🙂
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