Santa Maria Del Fiat School has over 1,200 students from pre-kindergarten through high school.
Santa Maria del Fiat is a semi-private preschool through secondary school that has been providing high quality education to children of the surrounding area for 27 years. It is one of the best schools in Santa Elena province, with over 1,200 students. Some children travel 90 minutes one-way by bus to attend this school.
Mission Santa Maria has been a longtime parter of Santa Maria Del Fiat, providing scholarships for children that cannot afford the $25/month tuition. Mission Santa Maria’s scholarship program allows children from the poorest communities a chance to attend school.
In addition to the scholarship program, Mission Santa Maria provides general funding support to Santa Maria Del Fiat to ensure continued operation. Santa Maria Del Fiat is a semi-private school, whereby the government pays most of the teachers’ salaries, but also mandates the cost of tuition, total staff requirements, minimum salary for all staff, and administrative requirements. This creates a structural deficit whereby the mission school cannot generate enough income to cover the operational expenses. Mission Santa Maria provides funding support for this structural deficit to ensure that the school remains open and can continue to educate children.
Finally, Mission Santa Maria is invested in maintaining the high-quality education provided at Santa Maria Del Fiat, as well as supporting improvements. Mission Santa Maria runs several projects to enhance the education at the school.
2024 IMPACT: BY THE NUMBERS
- 235 Scholarships: Gave 235 students from families that could not afford the $25/month tuition the chance to attend school
- 130 Uniforms: Helped 130 students with uniforms, books and school supplies to meet basic educational needs
- 51 Families Fed: Distributed monthly food provisions to 51 families in our scholarship plus program experiencing extreme food insecurity
- 35 Headphones: Purchased new headphones benefitting the Technology and English departments
- 1 New Teacher: Hired additional technology teacher to double hours of IT education the school
- 40 Computers: Received 40 donated laptops from Revivn to create a mobile technology lab
- 1,200 Students Speaking English: Maintained our comprehensive English program with decreased class sizes, an internationally recognized curriculum, and English teacher training workshops to get students speaking in class
- 1 Social Worker: Employed one social worker to oversee our scholarship program, conduct home visits, and ensure support of every student at the school