HIGH SCHOOL SCHOLARSHIPS

Although school is technically compulsory through primary school and free through the end of high school, there are multiple factors that impede students’ ability to continue their education.

Many families depend financially on their children’s help in the fields. Particularly during harvest time, school attendance at rural schools in Pueblo Nuevo dips drastically. For students who miss more than a month of school, this often means they are required to repeat the entire grade. In fact, according to UNICEF it takes Nicaraguan students an average of 10 years to complete the six years of primary school.

Continuing into high school represents an even bigger challenge. In rural areas, high schools are centrally located. This means that students living in smaller communities can live long distances away from the closest high school. Walking these distances is impractical, while transportation can be quite costly. In addition, while some rural elementary schools relax the uniform code for their pupils, high school students are required to wear appropriate uniforms and supply their own materials. Minimal as these costs may seem to US families, many students in Nicaragua are forced to drop out of school for lack of these basic school necessities.

At ABREN we believe that all youth should have the opportunity to receive an education, regardless of their ability to pay. Our scholarship program identifies students who demonstrate particular dedication to their studies and involvement with ABREN programs. These students receive new uniforms at the beginning of each semester, the basic supplies required by the school for their classes and, of course, support with their studies at the library.

In return, these exceptional youth offer 10 hours of community service each month. Past projects have included: aiding in the preschool program, teaching music and dance classes and providing after-school tutoring to younger students. For each school year that a student successfully completes in the ABREN scholarship program (including maintaining good grades), $100 is set aside for their college education, providing both support and incentive for students to continue into higher education.

This program has been very successful and beneficial not only to the youth themselves, but to the larger community of library users who benefit from their community service. However, at present we are very limited in the number of scholarships we can offer. The need and the pool of qualified youth far outnumber our current resources.

We want to expand the scholarship program and look forward to the day when we will have the resources to do so.