College Student Support - Guatemala

During the past few years Give Kids a Chance in cooperation with CasaSito organization, a NGO (Non Governmental Organization) operating in Guatemala, has supported more than 20 college students. College courses in Guatemala are equivalent to grades ten to twelve in Canada. If students do not attend college they are destined to a poverty level existence; there are no jobs available without education that provide salaries large enough to support even a small four person family.

Give Kids a Chance concentrates on college level scholarships because each student that graduates can find employment and then can continue their education at higher university levels by doing their courses on weekends. This is a very common route for poorer Guatemalans who must work to help support their families while at the same time attending school.

While we monitor our scholarship program by visiting Guatemala twice per year, our successes are largely due to the ongoing assistance we have from CasaSito organization. We work very closely with one of the founders, Alice Lee, as well as with a Guatemalan psychologist named Sisi, who is a staff member of CasaSito. Monthly meetings are held with each student to monitor their progress and assess any special needs. It is not uncommon for these young students to suffer emotional and physical abuse in their homes. They have been brought up largely in homes where alcoholism, drug abuse, prostitution and petty crime are all too common. Sisi, the psychologist, stays in weekly contact with us when situations arise with our students.

CasaSito also creates special workshops for our scholarship students to teach them how to avoid social pitfalls, such as teenage pregnancies and violent relationships. Scholarship money alone is not sufficient to guarantee success. They often need temporary assistance with food, medicine and/or psychological counseling.