Sometimes life gets you back on a path that has been chosen for you without you even knowing it. My job at a Charity Organization in New York City came to me unexpected, not looking for it. Seven years after I left to return to Mexico an opportunity to continue to help education came the same way with Film Annex. I knew they have been working in Afghanistan providing computer labs and the educational software Examer Content Creator to encourage education especially for women, with Womens Annex Foundation, their job there has been amazing. When they told me they wanted to do something similar in Mexico I was very excited.

Girls using a computer lab in Mexico

In Mexico the goverment must provide by Law public education to all children, the problem is the teachers Unions: they are extremely corrupt and problematic. The new president in his first year in office introduced a very much needed reform to change the privileges and abuses of these teachers. The positions used to be inherited and bought, because once you are a Union teacher it is imposible for you to get fired and you have a salary for life. Now in the reform this practice is forbidden and teachers have to be evaluated periodically. Since August 18th, 2013 teachers from all over the country came to Mexico City and have made a chaos all over the city with their demostrations. The goverment did not back down and now almost two months later the Union have agreed to return to the schools and finally start doing their job: teaching.

Empty classroom with students learning by themselves while the teachers are at their multiple demostrations

The question that remains now is what will happen with these two months of lost classes, how can they make up for the lost time? That is why schools like Mano Amiga are so important, they offer private good education in the poorest zones in the country. There are 20 Mano Amiga Schools in Mexico with 15,253 students. Where public schools are not enough or simply teachers do not do their jobs, they are an opportunity for the children of these communities. If they do not have access to education they are more likely to end up in a gang and in jail. The funding for these schools do not come from the goverment but from private donors. They have a scholarship program  where an individual can donate up to 80% of a children tuition and  the parents have to cover the rest so they commit to keep the children at school and studying. If it costs you it is more likely you will put all your effort into it.

A full classroom at Mano Amiga de Chalco where classes continue

Also the school for these children is a place where they have access to computers, internet labs, learn english, play sports, or simply develop social skills. Access to digital literacy is extremely important these days and will let them enter a world beyond their possibilities with the social media. In Mano Amiga Chalco School they have a digital library and kids from preeschool to high school use it on a daily basis. These projects lilke a computer lab or digital library are funded by generous American or Mexican individual donors. To continue the much needed growth they are very grateful for the help they get from Film Annex and other international organizations.

Digital Library donated by a private individual in Mano Amiga Chalco