Classes in Colcha started on March 10th, and for the first time ever, there is a graduating class of
secondary school students in the District of Colcha!
The 2014 Colcha School Expansion Project is picking up from last year, where we expanded the school
from 3 to 4 grades, to continue growing the school to 5 grades – complete secondary school. The 2014
fifth grade class, made up of 17 students from seven different communities, will be the first test of the
school’s ability to successfully graduate a secondary school class. For this reason, our hired teacher,
Octavio, will work especially close with the fifth grade students this year to ensure that their school
projects are functional and sustainable and that all students excel in their courses.
The project is similar to last year, in which we hire one teacher and the Municipality of Colcha and the
UGEL – Paruro hire the rest, in order to assure that the school can offer the full five grades of secondary
school and a high quality alternating education (15 days in the school, 15 days in their communities
working on their projects) for the students. We also included three educational trips to Cusco for the
fifth grade class to teach them about the formalization process for small businesses.
In December 2014, the fifth graders will present their projects to the Ministry of Education in order to
receive their technical certificates in their projects’ respective field. We also are in the planning stages to
work with Scotiabank in Cusco to provide capital investment in the top three students’ projects.
