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Pencils of Promise

Charity Overview

Pencils of Promise (PoP) is a non-profit organisation founded in 2008 to increase access to quality education for children in the developing world. PoP works with communities across the globe to build schools and create programmes that provide education opportunities for children, no matter what their background or financial situation. PoP has supported over 160 schools throughout Laos, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Ghana, and has established itself as a leading non-profit organisation which aims to achieve sustainable social change. The charity works with the Ministry of Education, local government, and area NGO’s to identify communities with high educational infrastructure needs. PoP also collaborates with existing institutions in order to fully understand the situation on the ground and create lasting changes.

Project Summary

A donation from ICAP Charity Day 2013 in New York has enabled PoP to build the Nahualate School in Guatemala and turn the provisional structures of Have Aveyoyoe and a Primary School in Afadjato, South Ghana, into permanent, safe classrooms.  

ICAP's generous grant funded a Pencils of Promise school in Guatemala and provided secondary school scholarships for students, impacting the lives of thousands of children for years to come.
Megan O’Connor, Director of Development, Pencils of Promise.

In Ghana, prior to ICAP’s support, the preschool students at Have Aveyoyoe were studying outside, underneath a tree and the primary students were attending classes in mud huts. 

The school officially opened on 22nd September 2014 and now serves 75 students.  The Nahualate La Cuchilla Preschool and Primary School in Boca Costa, Guatemala caters for 139 students.  Prior to the contribution from ICAP Charity Day this school lacked basic infrastructure and students attended class in a dilapidated, dangerous building. As a direct result of ICAP’s support PoP was able to partner with the local community to build a three-classroom school. These students now have access to a safe learning environment, helping to increase engagement levels giving these children a greater hope of progressing to secondary school education.

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