Mission Santa Maria supports exceptional students in pursuit of university degrees.
Most of the students in this program come from Esperanza Home for Children and would otherwise have no hope of receiving post high school education. The program pays for housing, food, healthcare, and university required supplies for each student during their years in university.
A university diploma can lead to a well-paying job in Ecuador, elevating these young men and women out of poverty for the first time in their families’ history.
2021 Updates and Accomplishments
In 2021, Mission Santa Maria supported 15 students to be able to attend university. To date, the university program has 4 graduates, all of whom are professionally employed with full benefits.
In 2021, Mission Santa Maria augmented the University Program to increase psychosocial support and mentoring to the scholars. The alumni participate in this process by speaking with potential and current scholarship recipients and offering advice and mentorship.
Additionally in 2021, Mission Santa Maria began supporting a preparatory course for potential scholarship recipients prior to taking the entrance exam to public university. The preparatory course is led by an Ecuadorian education expert in Quito. The course provides practical instruction for exam preparation as well as general orientation to the public university system in Ecuador. The course orients potential scholarship recipients to ensure that those eventually elected have a clear idea of what the university process will be like and to give the scholars the best chance at success.
