Keeping kids in school in many parts of Guatemala is a real challenge. Over 40% of children do not finish the 6th grade, in a country with a poverty rate over 75%. The key to the future is always with education and we are proud to use the Penny a Pound program to help kids stay in school. Working with Pueblo a Pueblo we are participating in their Primary Education Scholarship program targeting young students from Kindergarten to 6th grade.

These education scholarships will provide students  with school supplies, free health checkups and emergency care at the local health clinic, money to cover extra school expenses like field trips, gym clothes and uniforms.

This year Pueblo a Pueblo is starting to tutor students in the program who are struggling in school. 

Funds are administered through a teacher in the school so that there is assurance that the scholarships are spent where they are needed most.

Since its inception, the program has seen a 98% retention rate with its students.

Johanny Quieju, the manager of the Primary Education Scholarship program is also a native of Santiago. She is well aware of the challenges local coffee growing families face (a typical coffee worker in the area can earn as little as $2 per day), however she sees the promise of a better future offered by Pueblo a Pueblo.