About Us & Our Campaigns
Children without Schools.
The inaugural campaign by Andino International, "Give An Education" works to directly combat the many barriers preventing children in the Andean region from attending school and receiving an education. We accomplish this goal by building schools and supporting youth education in impoverished communities.
Who We Are.
Andino International is a nonprofit organization bringing education to children living in extreme poverty throughout Latin America. We give 100% of the money raised to fund the direct costs of educational development projects.
How We Work.
With the help of our regional partners, we build schools and provide them with the essential educational materials needed to teach. We partner with local communities and organizations in Latin America, selecting our partners based on their experience and ability to implement sustainable improvements in the places in which they work. We select projects that will have the greatest broad reaching impact and local community support. For more information on who we partner with and how we work together, click here.
Building Schools.
The cost of building a school varies greatly dependent on size of the building, location and a number of other variables. A one room classroom can be built for as little as $6,000 USD, but typical project costs range between $15 and $30,000 USD. Our target recipients, communities living on less than $1 a day simply cannot afford to provide such a facility for their children. They are entirely dependent on the government to provide for them. Unfortunately, in many cases the government schools are too disperse, often hours walk from villages. In addition, class attendance requires overcoming a high opportunity cost. Most children are required to work to assist the family in providing food and to cover living expenses. If they are attending school, they are unable to work during school hours.
"A long term investment in human capital via education is the best solution to poverty; yet, people can´t eat education." -Alejandro Toledo, Peruvian President 2001-06.
This is where we come in. We build and supply schools within these communities, barrios that have little or no educational facilities and huge attendance barriers. We meet with families, discuss financial, nutritional and social needs, and persuade parents of the enormous future benefit an education will provide their children. The students that your generosity educates are often from single mothers or illiterate parents, living in extreme poverty and in desperate need of support. Learn More.The Schools.
The curriculum is focused around literacy and basic mathematics. The teacher's are government appointed certified educational professionals and the curriculum is largely government mandated.
Not every community is the same, nor are the barrier to education identical for each child. In addition to constructing or renovating public schools, where educational infrastructure does not exist, we also build supplemental education facilities.
Some communities require additional educational facilities to assist children who have dropped out of school or were denied acceptance due to lack of prior education and age or financial inability to cover expenses. In such situations, supplemental schools are setup to act as a springboard to the existing government schools. In these cases, we seek to enroll students who are not attending school and educate them so that they may enter the formal school system the following year. In many cases, often due to overpopulation, attendance of government institutions requires passing an entrance exam for the grade corresponding to a child’s age. If a child falls behind or misses a year, they have little hope of gaining admission, without supplemented education. Our children are entered into the public school system as soon as they are able and are offered continuous support throughout their education.