What We Did Before
Initially, our club focused on installing water filters in bateys; however, we found that the filters were in frequent need of repair and were unsustainable in the long term. After further research, we found that a primary root of the water crisis was pollution from human waste. Consequently, we began to build cement latrines, which would help to keep waste out of the water supply.
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Why Did We Switch?
In 2014, however, students from our club visited the school in Batey 106. The school only offered classes through the fourth grade and was crowded with students; moreover, to get further education, students had to take a bus which most families could not afford.
We were inspired to shift our focus to expanding on the school in Batey 106. While there are many groups who install water filters and latrines throughout many bateys, this project is unique to our club and is focused on one batey in particular. By doing continuous work in a singular batey, we are able to make sure our projects have a long lasting impact and are maintained year to year. |
What Are We Doing Now?
In 2017, members of the club talked with children and adults in the batey to confirm details of our project and ensure that everything we are doing is truly wanted, and we were given an overwhelmingly positive response.
We launched our crowdsource fundraiser through You Caring with the goal of raising $25,000. With the generous support of our local Rotary Club and our community, we raised the funds by June of 2017. The new classroom was constructed in July and August, accommodating twice as many students as before. Our partner in the Dominican Republic, the Maranatha Mission, worked with the Dominican Ministry of Education to provide an additional teacher for this classroom, and the doors opened in September 2017. In addition to providing an education for these students, the school also served as a shelter during Hurricane Irma which hit the Dominican Republic in September 2017. |
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In February 2018, a group of Saugatuck Interact students traveled down to the Dominican Republic with Rockford’s Interact Club to interview the community members of Batey 106 to see what else could be done to improve educational levels there.
The Interact students learned that the ability to access education is the key to end the cycle of poverty. Students from both Saugatuck and Rockford discussed possible solutions to the issue with the Maranatha Mission, for example travel scholarships to a nearby high school. Ultimately, they came to the conclusion that building another classroom would expand the level of education up to an equivalence of 6th grade, and it would also serve as shelter for the growing number of tropical storms that often hit the Caribbean region. The construction of the school room would be in partnership with Rockford High School Interact Club. By December 2018, they have already raised $20,000, and we are responsible for the remaining one-third, or $10,000. |
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