Nicaraguan Students Finish a Successful 2020 Academic Year

What with Covid-19 outbreaks, an abrupt move to online learning, and not one but TWO hurricanes striking Nicaragua this fall, suffice it to say that 2020 has been a rough year for Nicaraguan students. But in spite of it all, our three scholarship students have met with academic success this year, and another class of San Nicolas high school students is only weeks away from graduating.

This success is thanks not only to the resilience of these students but also to the generosity of those who donated to support our scholarship students as they pursue a university education. The three students currently receiving scholarships will continue their studies in 2021, but we would like to be able to offer one or two new university scholarships to the high school class of 2020 in the coming year. To make this possible, please consider giving a gift to the San Nicolas Education Foundation this holiday season.

What does a SNEF scholarship do?

In Nicaragua, the best universities are public ones that are free already, so the SNEF scholarship doesn’t pay tuition. Instead, it pays for the auxiliary costs of attending university like food, transportation, school supplies, and lost income from not working – costs that could prevent students with fewer resources from being able to attend university. This year, for example, when classes moved online due to Covid, SNEF bought laptops for all of our students, enabling them to continue their studies remotely.

The SNEF scholarship in action (a.k.a. What have our students been up to?)

San Nicolas Education Foundation students have been busy in 2020.

Erick Alexander, who is finishing his second year of engineering school, had a total of 12 classes this year. He says his favorite class examined how engineers need to consider geological features when planning new constructions. Erick is proud of how he was able to pivot mid-year with the pandemic to learn new technology and computer programs in order to continue his classes online. Next year, Erick is looking forward to beginning his engineering practicum to get some hands-on experience. And he says that his scholarship has been key; without it, he wouldn’t be able to continue his studies.

Walkiria is finishing her first year of medical school in Leon. She was admitted into one of the most competitive programs in the country and has been very successful in her first year. Mid-year she faced the challenge of transitioning to virtual learning. She says it was stressful at first because she didn’t have a computer, but once the Foundation purchased a laptop for her, she was able to continue her classes online. Having completed most of her general study classes, she is excited to begin taking more advanced medical classes next year.

Birmania is finishing her first year of nursing school. Her favorite class this year was Anatomy and the Fundamentals of Nursing. Birmania says, “I am proud to know that I am learning something new that will be of service to people’s health, and to know that this is my vocation.” So far, her career goals haven’t changed a lot since she started; she hopes to use her nursing degree for the good of her community. Without this scholarship, Birmania says she wouldn’t be able to continue her nursing studies. 

What’s next?

As the school year draws to a close, SNEF is preparing to award 2021 scholarships. High school seniors can submit their scholarship applications now until December 11. These will be reviewed by the SNEF board and local scholarship committee, and at the beginning of next year, one or two top students will be selected to receive a scholarship.

To make this possible, please consider donating to SNEF. When you give to SNEF, 100% of your donation goes directly to the students, who are eternally grateful for your support in helping them reach their career goals!

Students Continue Studies Online as COVID-19 Cases Climb in Nicaragua

For weeks, the Nicaraguan government delayed closing schools and businesses due to COVID-19, but as cases have rapidly increased in the past month or two, classes at public universities have moved online. To accommodate this shift, SNEF purchased computers for our scholarship students, who would otherwise be scrambling to complete all their schoolwork on their phones.

Two of our students, Erick Alexander and Walkiria, wrote about how coronavirus has influenced their lives and their studies.

Walkiria

Con la situacion del coronavirus en Nicaragua la UNAN-Leon implemento que los estudiantes activaran su correo institucional para enviar trabajos a los docentes. Al principio se dificultaba porque no tenia una computadora pero gracias a Dios y a la ustedes ahora se me hace mucho mas facil y esto me permitio que me matriculara en el curso en linea que sugirio la Universidad para utilizar correctamente la plataforma Moodle y de esa manera no tener complicaciones al momento de subir las tareas.

Estoy en la ciudad de Leon porque debo ir una vez a la semana a la Universidad y ademas aqui tengo acceso a Internet para enviar mis tareas y no perder mi nota. Si yo me voy para mi casa tendre complicaciones para recibir el curso y enviar mis tareas. En la ciudad de Leon los buses circulan con pocos pasajeros y algunos negocios estan cerrados.

Gracias a Dios voy entiendo a las clases, estoy muy agradecida y alegre porque tengo la oportunidad de aprender. Deseo que este semestre de estudios generales termine para entrar a mi carrera de Medicina, mucho mas ahora que cuento con una herramienta fundamental para hacer mis tareas, como lo es la computadora.

With the coronavirus situation in Nicaragua, the UNAN University of Leon made it so students could use their university email to send school work to their teachers. At first this was difficult because I didn’t have a computer, but thanks to God and to you all, it is now much easier. This has allowed me to enroll in the online classes that the University suggested to correctly use the Moodle platform, and to not have complications with uploading and submitting my homework.

I am staying in the city of Leon because I have to go to the University once a week and also here I have Internet access to send in my homework and avoid dropping my grades. If I went home I would have complications taking classes and sending in my homework. In Leon, there are few people riding the buses and some businesses are closed.

Thanks to God, I have been understanding my classes and I am really grateful and happy to have the opportunity to learn. I hope that this semester of general education studies will prepare me to begin my Medical studies, especially now that I have such a fundamental tool to complete my homework, a computer.

Erick Alexander

[He wrote this before receiving a computer from SNEF].

Con mis estudios, desde la ultima semana de marzo empece las primeras practicas de clases en linia. Ya a partir de abril fue definitivo las clases en linia. A traves de unas aplicaciones que se llama “Classroom” que utilizo para enviar trabajos en documentos (Word, PDF, y trabajos realizados en Excel), y Zoom la cual nos conectamos para videollamada, estoy trabajando con mi telefono celular ya que no tengo computadoras ni Internet en casa. Solo utilizo recargando paquetes de datos a mi celular. He sentido dificil porque hay cosas que no entiendo, y en ocasiones el Internet no es muy bueno para trabajar. Algunos de mis trabajos los envio tarde debido a que no tengo una computadora propia – en ocasiones presto y en otras trabajo con el telefono celular.

Concerning my studies, since the last week of March I began having a few classes online. By April all my classes were online. Through an application called “Classroom” that I use to send in homework documents (in Word, PDF, and Excel format), and Zoom, which connects us by video call, I am working with my cell phone now that I don’t have a computer or Internet at my house. I just buy rechargeable data packages on my cell phone to use the Internet. It has felt difficult because there are things I don’t understand and sometimes the Internet isn’t good enough for me to work. Some of my school work I send in late due to the fact that I don’t have my own computer – sometimes I use borrowed computers and other times I work on my cell phone.

Scholarship Awarded to Birmania Rocha to Study Nursing

The San Nicolas Education Foundation has awarded a scholarship to Birmania Valle Rocha, a recent graduate of the San Nicolas high school who has just begun studying nursing at the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua (UNAN) in Managua.

Birmania is from the small mountaintop community of La Garnacha, a few miles from San Nicolas. She has two brothers and a sister. Her mother works in the home and her father is a farm worker. Birmania has always been active in her local parish, visiting neighbors’ homes to pray with them.

“Since I began serving God as a delegate of the word two years ago,” she explains, “I have felt a desire to serve the people, and from the bottom of my soul I feel that helping people who are sick is the way for me to do this.”

As Birmania is attending a public university (which in Nicaragua tend to be the best universities), her tuition is free. But the SNEF scholarship will give her the funds she needs to travel to university and buy food and school supplies.

Birmania hopes that her studies will inspire other young people in her community to pursue further education. Ultimately, she says she wants to work as a nurse in a hospital or clinic, ideally in her community.

In addition to nursing, Birmania is also interested in learning languages; she thinks that maybe after she gets her nursing degree she will go back and study English. But right now, she is putting all her energy into doing well in her nursing classes.

Meet Walkiria Lopez, our 2020 SNEF Scholarship Awardee

Walkiria Lopez has wanted to study medicine since she was young, and with the support of a scholarship from the San Nicolas Education Foundation, this month she will begin her degree. When she finishes, Walkiria will be the first doctor from her community, a small village outside of San Nicolas called La Tejera.

The San Nicolas Education Foundation is honored to award a scholarship to Walkiria, who made it into the very competitive doctor of medicine program at the most prestigious medical school in the country, the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua (or UNAN) in Leon. There, Walkiria will be living in university housing with other students.

The San Nicolas Education Foundation scholarship will support Walkiria throughout her college education. Although her tuition is free (as she is attending a public university), and her housing is currently being paid for by the university, she has many other expenses that she wouldn’t be able to afford if not for the scholarship — including food, transportation, books, and other school materials.

“For me, it has always been a dream to study and be a professional,” says Walkiria. “My family members were never able to study because they didn’t have money, but I will fight to be a professional so that later I can help my family and the people in my community.”

Walkiria grew up in the community of La Tejera, a long walk and bus ride away from San Nicolas, where she went to high school. Her father is a farmer, her mother works in the house, and she has an 8-year-old sister. She says that since she was very young, she has always enjoyed studying and learning, and in her free time she reads and plays chess.

That learning has clearly paid off. In high school, Walkiria competed in a number of academic competitions, representing the San Nicolas high school at departmental and then national chess competitions as well as receiving recognition at competitions for math, literature, and oration. In addition to her academic achievements, Walkiria has also been active in the Catholic church in her community.

Now, Walkiria’s attention is focused on studying to become a doctor. “My goal,” she says, “is that someday I will visit the houses in my community where there are sick people, and I will help them.”

SNEF Prepares to Award 2020 Scholarships

Looking back at 2019, we are feeling so blessed by all of you who have supported our foundation as we are just getting started in providing educational opportunities in rural Nicaragua. It was a wonderful first school year and we look forward to continuing this support to additional students in 2020.

Kyle with Erick, our first scholarship recipient

In 2019, we were able to support Erick, our first scholarship recipient, as he pursues his degree in civil engineering. As we look ahead to 2020, we are excited to think about supporting even more students, and the applications are rolling in!

 

In December, Kyle and Alli (members of the board and former volunteers in San Nicolas), were able to visit the town and meet with the local scholarship selection committee, as well as Erick. We celebrated a wonderful first year of university together and looked ahead to the next year. Erick has been excited and willing to share his experience with the high school students who are currently applying for the scholarship program. It was a joy to visit with Erick’s family and hear the impact that this scholarship has had on his opportunities to study.

Kyle and Mara with Idalia, the principle of the high school, and her family. Jamaly, SNEF local coordinator, is second from the right.

On a personal note, it was a wonderful visit for Alli and Kyle to introduce Mara (their 6-month-old daughter) to the beautiful people and landscapes of Nicaragua. The trip was a success for the foundation and for continuing relationships.

 

Here at the San Nicolas Education Foundation, we are looking forward to another university school year supporting students in San Nicolas. After results of the entrance exam are released in February, we will be able to make some decisions about our scholarship applicants. We are hopeful that these students will pass with flying colors and we will be able to support each of them with a full scholarship. This is only possible with your generous donations! So THANK YOU!! Watch for news of our newest scholarship recipients coming soon.

Kyle, Alli, and Mara visiting La Garnacha

Year One of SNEF Scholarships in the Books!

In Nicaragua, the school year is drawing to a close, which means that the San Nicolas Education Foundation is gearing up to award another round of scholarships to high school seniors who hope to begin university next March. So that we can continue to support young San Nicolaseños wanting to further their education, please consider giving a gift to SNEF this holiday season.

Erick Lopez, who is currently receiving a SNEF scholarship, recently went to speak to students at the high school in San Nicolas about how the scholarship has allowed him to study engineering this year at the university in Esteli. Without SNEF support, Erick’s family wouldn’t have been able to pay for him to travel on the bus to Esteli for classes every day; he would have had to restrict his studies to the weekends, or might have dropped his dream of attending university altogether.

With SNEF’s support, Erick has thrived in his daily university classes this year, getting good grades in all of his classes and even participating in extracurriculars like a school gastronomy fair and a day volunteering at a retirement home.

In addition to supporting individual students, SNEF also aims to ensure that many students have a chance at getting into university by funding exam prep classes. In the next month, these intensive classes will be offered at the high school in San Nicolas to prepare students for the mandatory national exam that they must pass to be placed in university programs.

After students have submitted their scholarship applications and received their exam scores in January or February, the SNEF board and local committee will meet to select one or two top students to receive a scholarship to attend university next year. But to make this happen, we need your support. Please consider donating to SNEF so we are able to award scholarships to the most ambitious and hardworking students in San Nicolas next year. When you give to SNEF, we guarantee that 100% of your gift goes directly to the students we support.

As we prepare for this next round of scholarships, we want to thank the many people who made our first year of the SNEF scholarship possible:

• Jamaly Lopez Camas, Local Coordinator, who has done the bulk of the work this year, collecting scholarship applications, checking up on Erick’s progress, communicating with his family, and making sure he got his scholarship funds on time.
• Our Local Committee: Idalia Lopez Camas, Reynaldo Larios Rayo, and Juana Martinez Calero, who helped us select our scholarship recipient.
• Everyone who donated to SNEF this year: thank you!

Meet Erick Lopez, SNEF’s First Scholarship Awardee

This year, the San Nicolas Education Foundation awarded its first scholarship to Erick Lopez, an engineering student from a community close to San Nicolas, Nicaragua.

Erick graduated from the San Nicolas high school last year and, supported by the SNEF scholarship, has begun a program in civil engineering at the National Engineering University in Esteli. “My career goal is to support projects that benefit my community,” says Erick, “whether by improving schools, roads, or churches. This degree will help me acquire more experience for my future work.”

Erick is from the small community of El Sesteo, which is situated seven kilometers up the hill from San Nicolas. He lives in a small house with his mother, uncle, and two younger siblings. His mother is an elementary school teacher in the San Nicolas municipality. In his free time, Erick likes to play baseball and listen to music.

The SNEF scholarship supports Erick’s bus transportation to and from Esteli every day and pays for food while he is in Esteli, as well as any textbooks he may need. He is currently finishing his first exams and says that so far his studies are going well and he has been enjoying his program. Congratulations to Erick!

SNEF Board Members to Visit San Nicolas

This March, Kyle Stiffney, Sarah Rich, and David Wiegner will visit Nicaragua to meet with Idalia Lopez Camas, the principal of the high school in San Nicolas, to discuss logistics and plans for implementing the scholarship in the coming year. There are a lot of details to be sorted out, including how scholarships will be awarded, what the scholarships will cover, and how this scholarship opportunity will play into the high school’s curriculum. We also hope to hire a part-time local staff member in San Nicolas who will help coordinate scholarship awards, as well as appoint a local committee of community members who will assist in selecting annual scholarship recipients.

Kyle, Sarah, and David will be in San Nicolas between March 21-24, so we will have more to report in April on the progress we’ve made in planning. Our goal is to award this year’s scholarships by October 2018 for students starting university in February 2019, so we have a lot of work to do!

The San Nicolas Education Foundation Is Official!

The six former volunteers/founders of SNEF: Sarah Rich & David Wiegner, Kristin & Billy Byrnes, and Kyle & Alli Stiffney

The San Nicolas Education Foundation became an official nonprofit in February 2018! This organization has been in the works for about a year.

Three generations of couples served two-year volunteer terms with the organization Volunteer Missionary Movement (VMM) in San Nicolas, Nicaragua from 2012-2017. So when VMM dissolved in 2017 and the last volunteers left San Nicolas, these six volunteers wanted to find a way to stay in touch with the community and support educational opportunities for young people in San Nicolas.

The Nicaraguan educational system is still developing after the country spent a grueling 40 years under a harsh dictatorship and 20 years under revolution that lasted until 1990. Especially in rural areas of Nicaragua, schools continue to struggle to prepare students to graduate and to continue on to university. Many students are forced to quit high school early to work on their families’ farms or earn an additional income. In San Nicolas, even students who have overcome all the barriers to graduating from high school – students who have the luxury of going to school rather than working, students whose families can pay for their school bus fares – even these students struggle to succeed within a school system that cannot afford to provide updated textbooks and quality educational resources. Students in rural, isolated communities like San Nicolas do not have access to the educational opportunities provided in more urban areas, so even when they do manage to graduate from high school, they are at a disadvantage in qualifying for the university entrance exam.

In Nicaragua, students must pass an entrance exam to attend the free public university system. There are private university options, but private tuition costs at least 40 dollars a month, which is not economically feasible for most rural families, and the quality of private education is often inferior to the quality of the public system. Even if students are able to qualify for public university, there are still significant costs in attending, including food and transportation costs, school supplies, registration fees, exam preparation costs and lost family incomes of students who have elected to study instead of work.

The founders of the San Nicolas Education Foundation have seen first-hand the difficulties that rural Nicaraguan students face in gaining a quality education that will lead them into profitable and meaningful work. This includes seeing many students struggle with the decision of whether to pursue higher education as well as the disappointment of so many students who are unable to continue their education due to financial reasons. Through these experiences, and through conversations with students and key community members in San Nicolas, the founders of the Foundation have developed a public university scholarship program that will increase students’ access to higher education and help to eliminate the economic barriers that so many students face. Through the Foundation, students will receive the preparation they need to qualify for the public university system, and qualified students will receive financial support to cover the costs associated with attending university.