Another Grad

We are definitely enjoying the buzz of excitement around another group of students completing a grade of studies. Monday saw 70 students receive certificates. Yeni, Edel, Manuel and the CPI Honduras Board organized the whole event. It went without a hitch so kudos to them all.

Grade 7

Grade 8

Grade 9

A number of observations:

 Maria Elsa, Gabina, Elin Banessa and José Erbin all took three Grades in our program. In less than eighteen months they completed three years of study.

It was also encouraging to see the way in which this educational opportunity has affected the self image of our students. Maria Elsa and Elin, especially, were very shy and retiring when they began. They even dressed in a very quiet way so as to make themselves invisible. As they have progressed in their studies, their dress and mannerisms have changed. It was moving to watch these students speak confidently in front of over 150 people.

A year of Junior High may not seem like a lot to people in some countries but here it is obviously something of great import. Notice the extent to which many of the students dressed up to celebrate their achievement. To be honest, I wore my best as well ... but certainly achieved nothing as spectacular ... sigh.

Two of the Grade Nine grads are planning on entering a Teachers’ College in January (Gabina and José Erbin). Less than two years ago, these two were looking at a rather bleak future. Now they can imagine and achieve a career as professionals. (Quietly do the Wave as you spin in your office chair.)

There were several groups of students who graduated because of the efforts of community members who were concerned enough to organize a learning centre in their homes. For me, this is especially exciting. When communities begin taking responsibility for organizing their own education, rather than waiting for the government or some other outside group to step in, everyone in the community benefits.  We had students graduating from twelve different communities.

Trinidad, from Las Delicias (and its setting of green mountains is truly delicious) has twenty students who meet in his home for studies. He has desks and computers for them to work at.  His wife teaches in the community kindergarten and has the school decorated with colours, cut outs and hand crafts.

Trinidad is a life long learner himself and is constantly studying new ways to grow crops, new plants to try and ways to value add to the crops they harvest. He has timber trees and fruit trees planted for long term income potential. He has over 2,000 coffee seedlings in place with hundreds more in his nursery. His house is surrounded by many unusual types of flowers.  It is exciting to talk with him because he knows so much and is able to grasp new ideas and mesh them with practical experience to come up with better solutions.

Elsa is a primary school teacher in La Barca. She helped organize almost thirty students and made space in the unused computer classroom in her primary school so that we could install four computers and give those students a chance to study. Yesterday I noticed one of the students over two kilometres from the school walking to her home.

Santos and Esperanza have a nursery and a knowledge of plants that is incredible. It is hard to walk through the nursery without filling the truck with plants. They organized a group of students in their community and encouraged them to continue studying.

Lydia in El Cipres opened her home for children to study and studies herself.

We are so pleased to have these and others contributing to the success of our students. It is interesting to note the confidence that this act of self-determination has given these people as well. They are beginning to take charge of their own future.

I think that is enough. I’ll let the pictures do the rest of the talking.

TTYL

BB

P.S. Click on the photos to enlarge them.