Information
Where does La Escuelita de Esperanza work:
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La Escuelita de Esperanza
San Jose, Costa Rica
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.
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Current Projects
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.
Partner Needs
La Escuelita de Esperanza is a small organization and operates on a very tight budget. We offer our services free to the children in Proyecto Cristal, and we do not charge our volunteers tuition or fees. In addition, we offer a basic dorm space for free to our volunteers on a first-come, first-served basis; this keeps the cost down for our volunteers, particularly for those who are staying long-term. We would like to continue to do all of these things, and we rely on individual donors for our operating costs and supplies.
Financial Needs
It costs $785 each month to run the Escuelita. Here is a break-down of that cost:
- $300 - Program Director Stipend
- $200 - Program Assistant's Stipend
- $200 - Rent and Utilities
- $75 - Health Insurance for Program Director and Program Assistant
- $10 - Wire Transfer Fee
In addition to our monthly program expenses, we would like to raise approximately $50,000 to buy property in the community and build an appropriate building that could double as a community space.
In Kind Needs
School Supplies
- Construction Paper
- Crayons
- Scissors
- Lined Paper
- Markers
- Glue Sticks
For Classroom
- Child-Sized Chairs
- Rugs
- Vacuum Cleaner
For Volunteer Dorm Space
- Twin-Sized Mattress
- Pillows
- Twin-Sized Sheet Sets
- Blankets
- Refrigerator
- Propane Stove Top
Mission Statement
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.