BECA's Newest Partner: Santa Monica Bilingual
BECA's first expansion school outside of Cofradia has been a long time coming for the organization. This past year when it was decided to partner with Santa Monica Bilingual School ("SMBS") in nearby Vida Nueva, it meant much more than just serving another school. It spoke to the confidence that has been built through the hard work of BECA volunteers and our Honduran partners over the past 10 years. When BECA placed four volunteer teachers at SMBS this past August, it was done with the passion and dedication - combined with 10 years' experience - that has served to make our flagship San Jeronimo what it is today. Thanks to the diligence of our first intrepid SMBS team, their 75 students in Vida Nueva will now experience the same life changing opportunities that our 250 students and 32 graduates at San Jeronimo have come to know through BECA.
Santa Monica Bilingual School was founded by La Hermanedad de San Agustin. During this first year of operation, Santa Monica has begun introduce BECA hallmarks such as a scholarship program, a Board composed of parents, Libros Y Familias (a family literacy program) and the implementation of BECA's custom-made curriculum. Santa Monica began the 2011-2012 school year with students from Kindergarten, 1st grade, and 2nd grade and will grow by one grade each year. The response from the community has been overwhelmingly positive and the first matriculation, held in February of 2011 maxed out the school's capacity within a day. Of those 75 students newly enrolled, over 100 of their parents attended the first community meeting.
BECA will continue to work and learn alongside our community of parents and the Hermanedad de San Agustin in order to provide the very best for this growing population of deserving BECA students.
Below are some photos taken during March 2011. During this period BECA offered introductory English classes to the students at Santa Monica before the 2011-2012 school year began in earnest.
