Guatemala Delivery Tour

CoEd is a Cincinnati based non-profit organization dedicated to breaking the cycle of poverty in Guatemala by providing textbooks and educational opportunities to under-privileged schoolchildren in impoverished areas.  The programmes are designed to improve both traditional and technological literacy, which are the corner stones of economic development. CoEd was founded in 1996 by brothers Joe and Jeff Berninger who were both on the tour.

PP Joey, Trevor and P-E Derek assisted in taking books to 9 schools during the 10 day trip from the 15^th to 24^th February; during which they covered several hundred miles over bumpy roads in mountainous terrain.

On his second trip Joey said, "This project brings vital textbooks to secondary schools in Guatemala. Studies show that the use of books in the classroom improves grades by 30% and the amount of material covered by over 70%."

How it works:

• Candidate schools are matched with donors such as Rotary clubs, companies, churches, foundations and individuals.
• Donated funds from the above groups are used to purchase textbooks in Guatemala in the vital areas of mathematics, science, Spanish language, and social studies.
• After delivering the textbooks, CoEd trains the teachers and students in methods for effective use and care of books. This training is essential because most teachers have never instructed using a book and most students have never owned a book nor do they have books in their homes.
• Finally, CoEd help the school set up a rental programme whereby it rents its books to the students for a small fee. The fees are put into a revolving fund that the school uses to purchase a new set of books when the original ones wear out.

Since the end of the Civil War in 1996 (that killed over 200,000 people) over 143,000 textbooks have been provided by the programme to 155 communities in Guatemala.

Also on his second trip Trevor observed "This project establishes computer centres within secondary schools, teaching the students Microsoft software basics and how to access the Internet. Eighty percent of mid-level jobs in Guatemala require computer skills; CoEd Computer Centers provide training necessary to obtain those positions."

How it works:-

• CoEd identifies candidate secondary schools, typically from its pool of successful textbook project schools.
• The computer center teachers are selected, directly trained and supervised by CoEd.
• Like the textbook projects, the computer centres are made possible by matching them with donors and striving for self-sufficiency through the schools' revolving fund process. Also, individual, corporate or other donors can directly sponsor the computer centres themselves, or individual workstations.
• 30 computer centres have been established in Guatemala, benefiting over 12,800 students together with 39 libraries. Scholarships have been provided for over 240 secondary students.

A plaque honouring Trevor and his wife Sally, as private donors to the computer project, was in the first computer centre inaugurated.

P-E Derek was on his first trip and was very impressed with what he saw. He said, "When one considers that 75% of the rural community is illiterate this programme is vital to the educational needs of the communities. I was delighted at the reception we received at all of the schools and the children were extremely enthusiastic and welcoming. It was obvious to all how hungry they are to learn and I will be happy to recommend that we continue to support the programme in the future."

Besides supporting the programme financially the Rotary Club of Grand Cayman also purchased several hundred dollars' worth of sporting equipment that was delivered by the three participants who were self-funded for the trip.