In 2010, an auxiliary/support teacher program was started in Chacraseca, Nicaragua. This program began with 8 elementary teachers in some of the schools in the community for several reasons: the lack of qualified teachers, lack of job positions with the Ministry of Education, and the increase of students attending schools. At the beginning of the program, a support teacher was assigned to a base teacher. This has now changed to assigning an entire class to these support teachers. Since our auxiliary teachers have all graduated with education-related majors, we considered that it was essential to continue with this type of program to improve children education in our community.

My name is Benita Mercedes Vivas Acosta. I am 25 years old and I live in the sector of Puerta de Piedra. I have a bachelor degree in Social Sciences and I am currently getting another bachelor in Primary Education. I have been part of the Support/Auxiliary Teacher Program for the last six year and this year also part of the FNEI Scholarship Program. 

This year I was assigned the 4th grade at the Instituto Alberto Berrios Delgadillo in the sector of Pedro Arauz of Chacraseca, and I teach to 16 children. In addition to receiving a monthly stipend to cover my expenses to continue with my studies, I have been able to receive theory and strategic principles in my major. Having the opportunity to practice with my students at the same time has benefitted me in a great manner because this helps me with my professional development. 

Thanks to FNE International for this program; it is a very powerful resource because we are providing support not only to the schools we teach but the entire community of Chacraseca through the education system.

In 2010, an auxiliary/support teacher program was started in Chacraseca, Nicaragua. This program began with 8 elementary teachers in some of the schools in the community for several reasons: the lack of qualified teachers, lack of job positions with the Ministry of Education, and the increase of students attending schools. At the beginning of the program, a support teacher was assigned to a base teacher. This has now changed to assigning an entire class to these support teachers. Since our auxiliary teachers have all graduated with education-related majors, we considered that it was essential to continue with this type of program to improve children's education in our community.

For all the complex reasons why poverty exists in the world, it is simply a lack of equity. Imagine trying to support your family day to day without a home, without reliable transportation, and without money to fall back on if circumstances change. In Nicaragua, this is the reality. Opportunities for advancement are few, and even exceptional individuals live paycheck to paycheck while hoping that what little they have is not taken from them by disaster or conflict.

Many organizations that aim to combat poverty do so by offering basic services or hand-outs to those in need. However, in practice, these methods often breed cycles of dependency among their recipients, doing little to affect the root causes of poverty. Rather than simply fixing problems that develop from poverty, FNEI strives to empower individuals to develop their own resources.

FNEI believes that by helping families to develop firmer economic foundations, they can and will succeed. Central to this belief is our housing project, a program developed from years of first-hand experience working in Nicaragua, and cutting edge research in philanthropy.</p><p>In the past three years, FNEI has built over 125 homes for families in Nicaragua, representing a dramatic increase in the quality of life and long term stability of hundreds of people. This work has had a tangible impact on the community where we work and serves as a model for innovative practices in humanitarian work both at home and abroad.

1. The community screens and recommends families based on need and income

2. Eligible families must prove that they have clear title to the land, contribute labor and pay a partial mortgage on their new home

3. Student volunteers and master builders then assist the family in building their new home, as well as a latrine nearby

4. The title of the home is put in the name of the woman of the household to ensure that the family is protected should the parents become separated.

5. The family now has a permanent residence and an opportunity to succeed

Ultimately, the family receives a house priced to their income, a wood-burning stove and latrine. This has a profound impact on the long-term stability of the family. Children with permanent homes have improved school attendance and better long-term health. As more and more families contribute mortgage payments, more and more houses are built through a system that is increasingly stable.

Each year, FNEI builds an average of 35 homes. With your help we can build even more and bring economic stability and growth to a region that is brutally impoverished. All while creating a dialogue that crosses boundaries of culture and class and discovering that, regardless of means, we are all humans living and cooperating together on one planet.

The Interactive Bilingual Reading program, known as IBR, was started between students from Miami Dade College (MDC) in Miami, Florida and students at the Ricardo Streb Library in Chacraseca, Nicaragua. Currently, the English Honors Society at MDC directly supports the program. 

Through this program, bilingual MDC students host weekly Zoom videocall sessions children aged 9-12 to reinforce reading skills and learn key vocabulary words and phrases in English, which arederived from the short stories they read in Spanish. The library staff also provides separate "reinforcement" classes to help the kids retain the material learned during their Zoom classes with their teachers at MDC.

Overall, it's a program driven by fun, curiosity, and a desire to explore new things! Thanks always to MDC for partnering with us. 

Tengo un Sueño supports 29 fifth and sixth grade students (“dreamers”) by providing an English teacher, two full-time community coordinators, uniforms, shoes, school supplies, along with 4 times a week English lessons and a warm lunch. The program is unique in scope. It is a 17-year agreement among parents, teachers, and organizers to nurture these children during their academic journey. It is currently in its 7<sup>th</sup> year. The goal is to support each child and ensure that they get to secondary school and then college. This project is taking place at the Hermandad MaryKnoll Elementary School in the rural community of Chacraseca (5 km east of León). The cost per child for this project is currently $25 per month or $300 per year.

Another effort that we support in the struggle for quality education is Hermandad MaryKnoll Vespertino Secondary School. In 2010 in Chacraseca, there was just one secondary school for a population of about 1,000 students. Area families suggested that the facilities in the existing Maryknoll primary school could be used as a secondary school in the afternoon. But government officials said they could not fund the teachers. In order to open the school, FNEI has committed to pay for six teachers at a cost of $11,000 per year. In its first year, the school served 48 students. In 2014, that number grew to 150. In 2015, the school had its first graduation.

Medical care in limited-resource environments is challenging in all of the expected ways – insufficient equipment, minimal staffing, low inventory of medications – but also in its limited access to specialty services. Too often physicians in health posts or well-meaning practitioners on medical campaigns refer a family to seek follow-up care for their child with a pediatrician or other sub-specialist.

For many of these families, accessing care that may even be free or low-cost is still prevented by the barriers of travel expenses and time away from work. Further adding to the challenge is that a sick or complex child is stressful to a medical provider not specifically trained in how to attend to their condition. This stress can lead to burnout and frustration on both the part of the medical staff and the families.

Through Salud para Todos los Niños (SPTLN), we have created a new approach to healthcare for children with chronic medical conditions. Founded in partnership with RGHA (Richmond Global Health Alliance), we worked directly with health posts in Chacraseca, Leon, and other parts of the country to enroll over 100 children with chronic or complex medical needs in a project to improve their care. Our international team of pediatricians and nurses both in Nicaragua and the United States reviews patient cases, gathers histories from parents, evaluates the patients and provides necessary information on care to the families. We use our connections both locally and abroad to get scarce specialty medical equipment. We also partner with pharmacies, facilitating discounted or free medications for our program participants. To further ensure this project’s success, we conduct specialty pediatric clinics in conjunction with local Health Posts and Special Needs centers three times a year.

Throughout the year, we maintain continuous follow-up with the patients and their families. Through this partnership between FNE, RGHA and the Health Post, we coordinate all care, referrals and diagnostic studies and respond to ongoing clinical questions in between brigades. We believe that our efforts will continue to build and go beyond ubiquitous public health approaches of vaccination and health maintenance to more directly address the complex medical needs of our patients.

La atención médica en entornos con recursos limitados presenta desafíos en todos los aspectos esperados, como la falta de equipo, personal mínimo, bajo inventario de medicamentos, pero también en su acceso limitado a servicios especializados. Con demasiada frecuencia, los médicos en puestos de salud o profesionales bien intencionados en campañas médicas derivan a las familias a buscar atención de seguimiento para sus hijos con pediatras u otros subespecialistas.

Para muchas de estas familias, acceder a la atención que incluso puede ser gratuita o de bajo costo todavía se ve obstaculizado por las barreras de los gastos de viaje y el tiempo lejos del trabajo. Además, agregar a la dificultad es que un niño enfermo o complejo es estresante para un proveedor médico que no está específicamente capacitado en cómo atender su condición. Este estrés puede llevar al agotamiento y la frustración tanto por parte del personal médico como de las familias.

A través de Salud para Todos los Niños (SPTLN), hemos creado un nuevo enfoque para la atención médica de niños con afecciones médicas crónicas. Fundado en colaboración con RGHA (Richmond Global Health Alliance), trabajamos directamente con puestos de salud en Chacraseca, León y otras partes del país para inscribir a más de 100 niños con necesidades médicas crónicas o complejas en un proyecto para mejorar su atención. Nuestro equipo internacional de pediatras y enfermeras tanto en Nicaragua como en los Estados Unidos revisa los casos de los pacientes, recopila historias de los padres, evalúa a los pacientes y proporciona la información necesaria sobre el cuidado a las familias. Utilizamos nuestras conexiones tanto local como en el extranjero para obtener equipos médicos especializados escasos. También nos asociamos con farmacias, facilitando medicamentos con descuento o gratuitos para los participantes de nuestro programa. Para asegurar aún más el éxito de este proyecto, realizamos clínicas pediátricas especializadas en conjunto con puestos de salud locales y centros de necesidades especiales tres veces al año.

A lo largo del año, mantenemos un seguimiento continuo con los pacientes y sus familias. A través de esta asociación entre FNE, RGHA y el puesto de salud, coordinamos toda la atención, derivaciones y estudios diagnósticos y respondemos a preguntas clínicas continuas entre brigadas. Creemos que nuestros esfuerzos continuarán construyendo y yendo más allá de los enfoques de salud pública ubicuos de vacunación y mantenimiento de la salud para abordar más directamente las necesidades médicas complejas de nuestros pacientes.

Projects

FUCPE School Project

Lambayeque

Cuzco Projects

Lima Projects

Support Teacher Program

Housing

Scholarships

MUDC - FNEI: Interactive Bilingual Reading Program

Niño Feliz School for Special Needs

Tengo un Sueño | I Have a Dream

Richard Streb Memorial Library

Health for All the Children (SPTLN)