Hello everyone! We are so excited to introduce to you our new student mentors from our Guatemala Groundswell program. This week, these new mentors come from Las Arrugas, a small village in Guatemala.
Introducing: Yoselin Andrea Gabriela Toc Mó
Meet Yoselin. Yoselin is 15 years old, the youngest in her family with two siblings. Her favourite subject is Communications and Language Arts. Due to her outgoing personality, she has a strong relationship with her classmates, helping whenever she can with homework and school projects.
Yoselin’s father recognizes the value that education plays in all of his children’s lives. That’s why he works hard to ensure his children get the necessary tools to develop new skills and gain experience whenever possible. The SOS scholarship helps pay for school tuition and school supplies, taking stress off the back of families such as Yoselin’s.
Her goal is to follow in her sister’s footsteps by entering the Bachillerato Ciencia y Letra and then continue on to college.
Introducing: Verónica Gualim Jul
Meet Veronica. Veronica is 15 years old and has two siblings. Her favourite subjects include science, math and Spanish. During her free time, she likes to read and play soccer. Veronica, or Vero as she likes to be called, is a very active person in her community. She participates in community programs, cleaning around common areas and enjoys religious events.
Vero has unfortunately experienced gender inequality and discrimination directly. This has ignited a passion to fight for equality of opportunity and the elimination of gender stereotypes.
Her role in the Guate Groundswell program is one of leadership and she hopes that her efforts benefit the community around her. The SOS scholarship will also allow her to buy school supplies and give her the freedom to use her time towards her studies.
Her dream is to continue her studies and become a nurse.
Introducing: Jeremias Ismael Jul Pop
Meet Jeremias. Jeremias is 13 years old and speaks Spanish and Pogomchi. In school, his favourite subject is the Natural Sciences. When he’s not studying, his favourite activities are drawing, playing soccer and supports environmental cleaning efforts around his community.
The financial support he receives from SOS is used to purchase school supplies and uniforms, as well as any other unexpected expenses related to his education. Jeremias’ father is currently the sole provider for their family of 7, and without the scholarship Jeremias would have to stop schooling and enter the workforce to help provide.
His dream is to study for a bachelor’s degree in computer science and start his own business.
Introducing: Juana María Cal Mó
Meet Juana María. She is 15 years old and speaks Paqomchi and Spanish. Her favourite subject in school is Natural Sciences because of her love of nature and animals. She is very concerned with social inequality and the disparity in education between boys and girls. This has led her to become active in her community, becoming a secretary of her telesecundaria committee.
When she grows up, she would like to be a teacher, committed to the learning of her students and the good treatment among them. To fulfill her dreams she has the support of her parents who believe that the education of their children is very important because it will provide them with opportunities to find a good job in the future, but above all, for them, it is important because they will learn important values for social coexistence.
For her, being part of Students Offering Support and Guate Groundswell will help her make an impact on her students’ lives as well as her own. She seeks to not only teach students but also to learn new things from them. Among her teaching goals are to decrease students’ shyness with new learning methods.
Introducing: Jesús Julio
Meet Jesus. He is 14 years old and has a love of watching movies, playing games like chess and singing. Jesus is currently in 1st grade and his favourite subject is math. Jesus’ educational aspiration is to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science
His parents have continued to support and encourage Jesus to continue with his studies.
“For my parents it is important to study so that I can learn new things, developing and learning new things so that I can achieve my goals, have a decent job and be someone in life”.
Jesus is active in both his community and school. He participates by planting trees and collecting garbage to keep the streets clean in his community. At the telesecundaria, he is the Vice-President of the Student Committee and is known by his classmates as a motivating figure.
Thanks to the scholarship he will receive from Students Offering Support, he will be able to support his parents by using this money to buy school supplies and all other school expenses. For Jesus, this type of support is invaluable, given the limited economic resources in his family. Without this support, his education would have to put on hold indefinitely.
His commitment to eradicating gender discrimination, his drive to continue his education and his motivating presence around peers make him a great fit for the Guate Groundswell program.