June 2017 Facility Sponsor

Lan Vwa
Sponsorship Network
June 2017
T
he school year is half way through. Our staff and students are getting ready for
their two week summer break in Joconal. Already this year, our students have done
so much! Along with their required curriculum, they have written two books in the
reading program, harvested cucumbers from the garden, completed two workshops,
and are all improving in math class. We love watching as they begin to relate
what they are learning in the classroom to different programs or everyday activities. When our
students begin to see why they are learning something, we know we are doing our job.
As the school years moves on, things naturally get more difficult. Each year at this time,
the students can begin to get discouraged. They think about quitting and going back to the life
they knew before. It is easier for them to wrap their minds around doing what they’ve done for
years than pursuing a better future. Unfortunately, they’ve been the subject of deep rooted prejudice.
The people of Joconal didn’t believe they were capable of change or even deserved it. We
know that is a big, fat lie. Our students now are paving the path for all the kids to come in Joconal.
For that, they cannot quit! We’d love if you would help us encourage our students right now. Just
tag @LanVwa on Facebook or Twitter with your message to the students and tell them why they
should #keepitup.

Sharing a Love for Books
The reading program began this month in Joconal.
Only one of four students completing secondary
education in Guatemala met the national standards for reading
according to the Department of Education. Even worse,
one of ten students completing secondary education in
Guatemala met the national standards for math. Language
and reading comprehension have been closely connected to
a student’s ability to excel in math. Knowing this, it makes
sense why math averages are so terrible.
When we began classes in Joconal, we saw first hand
how our students struggled with reading and math. The lack
of access to early childhood eduation and a poorly run government
school had left them grade levels behind. We knew
that we needed to do something to break this terrible cycle,
so we decided to launch the reading program.
By launching the reading program, we hoped to help
remediate the students enrolled in our secondary school
and begin to introduce young children in Joconal to a love for
reading. With expert guidance from Flory Simon, we started
our reading program in March 2016. Our 7th thru 11th grade
students write books throughout the school year, taking
them through the creative process. Later in the school year,
the young children are invited to the school. Our students
are paired with a kid and read aloud to them. They read
books they wrote and books from our library.
On Wednesday, June 14th, we had our first reading
day in 2017. We had 13 children ages 4-6 years old come for
an hour of reading with our students. Every Wednesday for
the rest of the school year, our students will spend time
reading to these children. It is a small step, but it’s a step in
the right direction.
1 out of 4
students completing
secondary school in
Guatemala met the
national standards in
reading.

Karina
Leiva
Country Driector in
Guatemala
1 out of 10
students completing
secondary school in
Guatemala met the
national standards in
math.
Karina lives in Guatemala
City with her daughter, Ily.
From a young age, she had
a heart to educate students
in her country. She began
working with Lan Vwa in
August 2013 and has been
working passionately to empower
communities through
education. She really does it
all in Guatemala. We could
not do what we do without
her.
“Lan Vwa is empowering
our kids, and we are seeing
changes in them. They
are seeing life differently.
We now have kids that want
to be lawyers, architects,
teachers, and pilots, all
things that we didn’t see
before. They dream now. I
love seeing the community
change and moving towards
a better future.”

Get Involved
Check out all the ways you can help!
Visit us
online
LanVwa.org
Our school would not be running without people
like you. It has taken voices from all over the USA
and Guatemala joining together to get us where we
are. Thanks to your willingness to share, we have
made a difference in the lives of an entire village,
but we want to do more!
That is why we created the Ambassador Program.
We want to equip passionate people with the tools
they need to make a bigger impact. That means
taking our model to more students and impacting
more communities through sustainable education.
Sign-up to share your voice!
We love to share our mission!
Would you like to get your church or community
group involved in our mission, but you’re not sure
how? Right now, we are looking for church and community
groups to partner with in order to expand
our mission. If you think your group would be interested,
just send us a note. We’d be happy to give
you materials to share or come share with you.
Email kellymarie@lanvwa.org to get started.
Say
hello
They want to
hear from you!
The students would love to hear from you. You have pictures of them. Why not
send them a picture of you! Let them know who you are and things that you like
to do. This is a great opportunity for them to learn about your culture and for
you to encourage them to keep up the good work.
In order to make things simple for you, we’ve created an email for your sponsorship
communications. No need to worry about your Spanish skills, your
email will go to our staff for translation before being sent to the students.
Email: students@lanvwa.org
Subject: From “your name”