NEWTON SAN JUAN DEL SUR SISTER CITY PROJECT INC
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April 21, 2013
The Free High School for Adults in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua is my favorite non-profit. I don’t know of a more effective project to provide educational opportunity anywhere.
The Free High School for Adults is a non-profit that creates the opportunity for adults to get a high school education. Adults in Nicaragua, anyone over the age of 18, have no possibility to attend high school without this project. Many of these people had to leave school and go to work to support their families at the age of 14 or 15. They are still working, but on Saturdays from 7:30 in the morning until 4:30 in the afternoon they can attend this intensive high school program and get a real education. For this opportunity, many people get up before 5:00 a.m. and travel by foot, bicycle and bus to reach the high school. All the money for this program comes from donations to the project and all the fund-raising is done by volunteers. Each student in the program commits to helping at least one other person improve their skills. The Minister of Education has proclaimed this a “model program for the nation”, but the government provides no funding for the program.
The number of students completing high school through this program has grown from 12 in its first year to 63 in December of 2012, with a total of 482 graduates plus 60 in the Technical Program. Some of the students have gone on to university on scholarships. Others have found new, better-paying jobs based on their new skills and some have begun their own businesses.
That’s why the Free High School for Adults in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua is my favorite non-profit.
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Would you volunteer for this group again?
Definitely
For the time you spent, how much of an impact did you feel your work or activity had?
Life-changing
Did the organization use your time wisely?
Very Well
Would you recommend this group to a friend?
Definitely
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2013
October 24, 2012
I have visited the high school for adults, a Newton Sister City Project as well as other projects in San Juan. The sister city has helped citizens of San Juan for years to get education for people who are otherwise unable to go to school because they are working or because the women have children, to get clean water and get stoves with chimneys that alleviate the lung diseases caused by the interior cooking fires. Every project in which I have participated used used the small amount of money it had wisely, primarily for supplies and salaries for the San Juan teachers and other workers. Wherever I went in San Juan with any of the Sister City Project workers we were greeted with enthusaism and gratitude even from students who had attended the school years ago. This is a project that deserves all the support it can get because the returns in terms of betterment of people's lives are so great and obvious. This organization has had a life changing impact on people who, for instance, got jobs they would not otherwise have been able to get because the free high school for adults offered them an opportunity Nicaragua denied them.
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Will you volunteer or donate to this organization beyond what is required of board members?
Definitely
How much of an impact do you think this organization has?
Life-changing
Will you tell others about this organization?
Definitely
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2012
February 24, 2011
The Free High School offers a second chance to people who were cut out of the school system for various reasons. Girls who became mothers before they finished school , boys who did not finish by seventeen would never have had a chance at an educaton without the Free high School and that's what gives this school its aura of heroisim and achievement and promise for the future where old and young will assist each other and the distinctions will be less important. The graduates go on to more productive lives than they had hoped for and that is what makes supporting this endeavor so particularly satisfying.
The Great!
I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
Unfortunantely my experience is all vicarious but the stories of the graduates are inspiring
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
make more schools like this one
October 22, 2012
The Free High School serves a pressing need in San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua--a huge number of people (over 18, or pregnant or with kids, or who have had to work) are simple not allowed to attend the "public" high school. The FHS is a lifesaver for them. They get to complete a secondary education, either in their villages, or by coming into town once a week and studying all day in the Sabatino or Saturday School. And because they follow the national curriculum, their degree has the same value as a public school diploma. It's been wildly successful, so much so that they're bursting at the seams, with enrollments rising steadily year after year. People know a good thing when they see it. Until the government Does The Right Thing and starts to fund secondary educations for EVERYBODY who needs it, we all need to support the FHS, which has been called "a model for the rest of the country."
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How does this organization compare with others in the same sector?
Very Well
How much of an impact do you think this organization has?
Life-changing
Will you recommend this organization to others?
Definitely
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2012
March 1, 2011
Imagine a huge population--over 18, or pregnant, or married, or with kids, or need to work during the week--who simply aren't permitted to attend the public high school. Then along comes a FREE High School for ADULTS and before you know it the new school has more students (and higher morale) that the public school. This is incredibly cool, and a real tribute to the founders, the teachers who give their time and skills, and the students who simply love their school! I've been there, I've seen the energy in the classrooms. It's truly inspiring.
The Great!
I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
learning about how successful they were after graduation and what a difference it has made in their lives to be able to complete high school after waiting for so long.
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
make it a model of adult education for all of Nicaragua.
October 18, 2012
The staff, vision, coordination, and impact of programming allow this organization to deeply affect the lives of many. I believe this organization is helping to create a better world.
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Will you volunteer or donate to this organization?
Definitely
How much of an impact do you think this organization has?
Life-changing
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2012
July 18, 2012
I'm an educator, and I love schools. A good school is at the heart of a community. The Free High School, by providing education and services (for 550 people!) is doing something not just for the students, but for the communities they are a part of. San Juan Del Sur is fortunate to have partners here who understand (1) the importance of a good education and (b) that we owe something to the people of Nicaragua.This project makes a difference.
More feedback...
How does this organization compare with others in the same sector?
Very Well
How much of an impact do you think this organization has?
Life-changing
Will you recommend this organization to others?
Definitely
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2012
July 16, 2012
There is no way to quantify the good that the Newson San Juan del Sur Sister City Project has done over the course of nearly 25 years. Many volunteers and organizations come and go, but this charity has remained dedicated for the long haul. As a result at least 20 schools have been built and maintained, hundreds of water filters have been distributed throughout rural communities, and families have received EcoStoves to prevent respiratory diseases. The Free High School for Adults has provided a top notch government recognized education to hundreds of teens and adults who have no choice but to work during the week and receive their secondary education on Saturdays.
Photos
The Great!
I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
learning firsthand from Nicaraguan campesinos about the challenges and struggles they face, working alongside locals to solve their community's problems using low cost and low-tech solutions, sharing deep conversations and brainstorming sessions with Nicaraguans and Americans in both countries, making life-long friendships.
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
seek ways for more supporters to join our cause, because even though the charity is based in Newton, the projects have expanded and warrant volunteers and assistance from anyone and everyone interested in promoting literacy, public health, and sustainable development.
More feedback...
Would you volunteer for this group again?
Definitely
For the time you spent, how much of an impact did you feel your work or activity had?
Life-changing
Did the organization use your time wisely?
Very Well
Would you recommend this group to a friend?
Definitely
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2012
July 13, 2012
I love the Free High school for Adults because it provides an opportunity for adults who live far away in the country and/or work during the week to get a real education. As a supporter, I have heard the personal stories of people who have attended the high school and it has made an incredible difference in their lives. Some have been able to get new kinds of jobs, some have gone on to university and some have improved their skills, such as math skills, so they are able to work more effectively. It does such a good job of providing education for its students that officials have said it is a model of what schools should be.
The other aspect of the high school that I like is that the students are required to teach others, so that education spreads even beyond the students who are enrolled in the school.
Finally, I am happy to support the high school because all the fund-raising and administrative work is done for free so support for the school actually pays for teachers and supplies.
More feedback...
Was your donation impactful?
Definitely
How likely is it that you would recommend that a friend donate to this group?
Definitely
How likely are you to donate to this group again?
Definitely
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2011
July 12, 2012
I live in Newton, Massachusetts and have been impressed by the commitment of the high school students and citizens of Newton in their passion for San Juan del Sur high school. And I I learn more about the Free High School for Adults, I am inspired by how much the students value their education and how much it takes for them to achieve something that we take for granted. As a former teacher of middle school, I believe that education is the answer. Congratulations to all.
More feedback...
Was your donation impactful?
Definitely
How likely is it that you would recommend that a friend donate to this group?
Definitely
How likely are you to donate to this group again?
Definitely
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2011
March 2, 2011
My visits to the Fee High School for Adults in San Juan del Sur have been marked with admiration and awe for both the students who arrive in large numbers to attend the classes and the project directors who have conceived and sustained such an amazing institution.
The classrooms were so full that folks were hanging out of doors, taking notes in their tattered notebooks.
The women spoke of their hopes for a different future because of the education they were receiving today.
The Great!
I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
planning for future service trips to Nicaragua
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
offer more classes
February 28, 2011
It has 356 graduates and 550 students a year.
San Juan couldn't do without it.
Gosh, we could use something like it here too!
The Great!
I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
the enthusiasm of local supporters and their glowing reports back to us.
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
I don't have sufficient experience to be bold enough to interfere.
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