Ellen Forstrom Speaks to Club about James R Ganley School

Today we were happy to receive updates on the James R Ganley school in Mexico.  This is a school that the club has been a supporter of for some time.  Ellen delivered a card sent to us by the student that we are sponsoring and he is doing very well.

The school is in a very impoverished area of Mexico with a lot of drug problems in the immediate area.  Most parents cannot afford the cost of sending their children for a reasonable education.  The school fills that gap as much as it possibly can.  Children attend for free as they are all sponsored.  However, one of the innovative approaches is that the parents have to do five hours of volunteer work at the school.  The parents are also required to take some courses that are provided to provide life skills and increasing their education level.

Retention at the school is excellent and 98% of the children go on to high school, which is way above the average for the area.  The conditions are difficult and there are a lot of influences that could lead the children down a path that is not good for them, so the work of the school is vital and it is fulfilling its mission.

The school is run by an American couple who have been there since the start and it is part of Touch the World ministries.  All of the teachers at the school are fully certified by the Mexican authorities.  One great source of stability is the fact that the same Headmistress, who is Mexican has been running the school from the start and is very committed to the quality of the school.

We are happy to continue to sponsor this great initiative.  Below Club President, Tom Madigan presents a sponsorship check to Ellen.

 Below are the slides that Ellen used for her talk.  They are reproduced with her permission: