Each Saturday morning dedicated teachers from Colegio Juan Wesley load the pickup with tables, chairs, and equipment before they visit Club Extra sites located up to an hour’s drive away. Student hosts invite neighbor kids into their home. Each site has 12 – 15 kids. David a host that just graduate has a larger home, he has 30 kids.
The team brings many devices: tablets, Chromebooks, laptops, a printer, a mini projector and the essential Rachel router. Most devices are battery powered.

The club serves a wide range of kids, pre-school, never evers, dropouts and those still in school. Some of the students are daily commuters to Colegio Juan Wesley, some go to local public schools and some should be in school but don’t have the opportunity. Their needs are varied. Some want help finishing homework, others work on English. The structure is loose, focused on self paced learning and designed to cover the gaps or feed the curiosity that each student has.

There is no internet. The programs and digital information are served from a battery operated router with storage called RACHEL (Remote Area Community Hotspot for Education and Learning). Rachel uses wifi to broadcast Khan Academy lite, Wikipedia and other programs to nearby computers. Much of the content is relevant to Guatemalan kids.

The clubs have been organized in close collaboration with parents and community leaders. Recently the Ministry of Education heard about the program. They recognized quickly the common goals and collaboration has begun. Club Extra facilitators have been invited to a workshop with the public school teachers. Together all educators agree that there are major deficiencies in the system and a great deal needs to be done to raise the bar especially in math, science. In one center the Club Extra resources are used to help students pass a mandated computer course for which the government can’t provide equipment. The alternative is for the student to walk to an internet bar. Several have walked up to an hour to get their homework done.

Club Extra brings computers and instructors to the home to fill a void in education. Club Extra satisfies the curiosity kids in Guatemala have to learn. Club Extra is a God sent.

Director Timoteo Chocoy says “ We can’t stop. The kids expect us every Saturday and are waiting for us when we show-up.” Visit Album.

But can it continue? All stakeholders agree the program needs to continue. Expansion is dependent on replicating the process: more personnel, another truck, more computers and Rachel routers. More resources will enable more clubs to be established.

Club Extra was born meeting the needs of the community. Consider helping us help the next generation of Guatemalans today.