Who are we?
Children of Ecuador is a is a non-profit organization created to raise the level of education of Ecuadorian children. This program was founded in 1999 as Genesis Volunteer Program with the mission of offering free education to the children most in need. These children have no chance of being educated and without education they have no future. In Ecuador only 60% of children go to school. Of those 60% only 20% finish their education. The children who most benefit from this program are living in very poor conditions. They come from families who have no money, with one or no parents. Their parents work as shoe shiners or selling candy and cannot pay for their children’s education, and therefore the children forsake their education, their future, in order to make a living. Thanks to CE Volunteer Program and its volunteers, during the last five years this reality has drastically changed in Bahia de Caraquez.
For each volunteer’s participation one child has the opportunity to study free for three months.
Genesis School - We are a small private school, with 80 students. We made this program to improve the quality of the education of our children. We get our budget not from the government, we get from several parents of the school, from the internet coffee, the volunteers and the Program.
What are our goals?
Children of Ecuador has many goals. We identify the most promising students in local schools and invite them to study at our school. We strive to offer scholarships so that children in greatest need can benefit from our school and receive a good education and be provided with school materials. In addition, the program aids four other schools in teaching English with the help of volunteers, in planning the curriculum, in donating materials, and in contributing to the salaries of the teachers. In our program we tend to the basic needs of children. Commodities like bathrooms, which some take for granted, are considered a luxury in some schools. CE provides schools with the funds to build bathrooms and classrooms. Our program builds classrooms that are clean and large so the students can be comfortable as they learn. GVP was created to provide children with the opportunity to learn regardless of their financial situation.
Who is the Coordinator of the Program?
My name is Vladir Villagran, 38 years old, Technician of computing, I was born in USA, but I live for most of my life in this beautiful country. I Like to talk and dance. I created this program to share, learn, help with the people that do not have the opportunites many others have.
Feel free to Contact us:-
Vladir Villagran
Coordinator
P.O. Box 13-02-8
Bahía de Caráquez-Manabi-Ecuador
Email: vladir@childrenecuador.org
School office Tel: 593-5-2692400, home stay: 593-5-2690214
or
Nicolamaldini@hotmail.com
Nicola has been working with the programme since July 2006, originally as a volunteer herself she will be happy to answer any questions you may have as she has first hand experience of the programme.