EDUCATION

The focus of Poco a Poco San Pedro has always been education. We support, encourage and provide pre-school education, and in some cases, financial support, to help families enroll their children in primary or secondary school. If these children don't get registered at age 6 in primary school (which is for 6-12 year old's) they will forever fall behind and never catch up, even if they enter school a year or two later (because they get put into their age level grade). We try to help these children with our tutoring program with a professional primary school teacher and teacher assistant.

In 2026 there is a new grant program focused on supporting low income families with money so they will send their children to school. We are now trying to enroll as many children as possible under this program, but it does not yet cover the early primary school grades (which are essential)! We hope this changes very soon!

Schools in Mexico are "free" - but they aren't without cost. There is a registration fee (no receipts), a requirement for each child to pay towards maintenance costs of the school (cleaning supplies, water, toilet paper, etc.) - again no receipts. And each child is required to have a complete uniform with shoes, and all the required school supplies - otherwise they are sent home from school. This is financially impossible for many families especially single mothers who are working away from home and the children are being looked after by grandmothers.

When school started in August 2024, we were surprised to learn that many of the children that come to our community center eat a meal, don't go to school at all. So we frantically raised funds to pay for their enrollment, uniforms and school supplies. Then we found many had no prior "pre-school" education because their grandmothers, who many live with, have limited education themselves, and no money for learning activities or toys. These young children were way behind even before starting primary school.

If children don't get registered at age 6 in primary school (which is for 6-12 year old's), they will forever fall behind and never catch up, even if they enter school a year or two later (because they are put into their age level grade).

We try to help these children with our tutoring program being held three mornings a week with a professional primary school teacher and teacher assistant, that Poco a Poco pays for.

Many families in the San Pedro Itzicán area and the smaller villages, cannot afford the cost of outfitting their children to attend school. And sadly, some families don't appreciate the value of education, as the did not have it themselves. So they don't send their children to school at all - especially girls.

School is often financially impossible for some families especially single mothers who are working away from home and the children are being looked after by grandmothers.

Some municipalities (city halls) help by offering free school supplies, but sadly this does not happen in these areas. There are local primary schools in all the small towns and villages; and secondary and high schools in San Pedro Itzicán and in Mezcala. (But children from the small villages have to travel to get to secondary school - another cost to those parents so few get further education after primary school.)

Thanks to some generous donors, we pay some older students to work with the children who come to the community center. The children arrive at the San Pedro Community Center around 9:00 am, Monday through Friday, as the Community Center has become a safe place for them to be, to socialize and learn, before they get their lunch.

One young high student, Mercedes, is running the class and works from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm each day - sometimes with over 80 children! Another student, works with the 2 to 4 year old children. They usually do some stretching exercises, games, as well as activities that help the children develop their motor skills, such as coloring, drawing, as well as teaching them the alphabet and numbers. The children are then organized for lunch; washing their hands before meals, tidying their work area, and getting their meal. The children are also getting life skill lessons that perhaps they are not getting at home.

In July 2025, we held a Gourmet BBQ to raise funds for education. We also receive funds from St Andrew's Outreach Program (the Anglican Church in Riberas, Chapala), to help pay for education costs. The Kanata Rotary Club of Ontario, Canada also contributed funds towards education. We are very grateful for all this help.

September 1st was the first day of school in 2025, but the supply list wasn't available until that day. (So parents missed the "sales" at Walmart etc..) So the final supplies that were needed could only be purchased after 2nd September and Anita and her team organized that. These are some photos from September 2025 when the children received their school supplies.

receiving school supplies with Anita and Ana Laura.JPG

In September 2025, we were able to assist 45 families with school registration and over 69 children with school supplies.

In 2024, some donors provided financial help for four students to get their high school education. Two students graduated in July 2025 (Mercedes and Lupita). The other two young women took adult prepa classes and finished their exams in July 2024, but even by February 2026, they have still not received their final certificates. Now one of these women had a baby and the other is still deciding on her future. But without final certificates, it's not easy to apply for further education. It's been frustrating.

The youth in these areas have many challenges in planning their futures, and the pressure is on them to support their families by working. Their parents can't afford education for their children, and don't always understand the value of education. If a student actually passes the high school exams (prepa), they can't imagine taking a 4 year course in any subject. If they do anything, they opt for shorter college programs. But they still struggle, because their education levels are below urban school levels.

In 2022 and 2023, with the help of sponsors and Work, Play, Love, we helped five adults with their auxiliary nursing training. But again, the school failed for a long time to provide them the final exams and certificates. They got them in 2025. (One student who passed the exam prior to the others, is now working as a nurse in Chapala! That is wonderful!)

Because of the extreme poverty of many families, parents do not necessarily encourage their children to attend school as they want them to start working to help support the family. In the Municipality of Poncitlán, according to 2020 studies, estimates are that nearly 48% of the population did not complete primary school. Many never attended school. So among adults and youth, there is a high illiteracy rate.

Naturally this limits what work they can find. Many girls get pregnant in their teens, and they see that as their career. But later, many become single mothers and then they face huge challenges as they don't have the education to get good paying jobs.

Thus the cycle of poverty continues, because all they can find is work with very low salaries with no benefits, and insufficient money to feed their families. We know that education is the key to changing lives.