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Project ABC: Community Literacy in the Bateyes

Challenges Entered: 
Project ABC works in Haitian-Dominican communities of the Dominican Republic establishing community-based literacy programs. ABC utilizes the resources of social web to innovate its programs, build solidarity, and broaden its impact.

Haitians immigrate to the Dominican Republic hoping to improve their quality of life. However, due to discrimination against persons perceived as Haitian or of Haitian descent, many children born in the Dominican Republic find themselves denied birth certificates. In the Dominican Republic persons without Dominican birth certificates do not have a legal right to attend public schools or access any public educational programs. Thus a large cycle of illiteracy ensues particularly in Haitian-Dominican communities, with the denial of educational services stymieing growth and opportunity. 

batey Project ABC (Alfabetización en los Bateyes para la Comunidad) works in five Haitian-Dominican communities in the Dominican Republic by organizing and supporting adult basic education classes and community libraries. Project ABC sees literacy as an essential tool in community development. Relying on a participatory methodology Project ABC engages community leaders and trains them in popular education methods which create a forum for discussion and learning of issues relating to HIV prevention, family planning, legal documentation, and gender equality.  The use of technology is an important tool for the long term strategic plan of Project ABC. Resting on the belief that bigger is not always better, ABC looks inward to improve its systems so as to serve as a model for program design among the some 20 other nonprofits serving over 125 Haitian Dominican communities throughout the DR.  

in class

ABC plans to strengthen community leadership through trainings and decentralization of tasks. Rather than following a top-down method of data collection, where the director would collect and enter student performance data each month, ABC plans on training community leaders and facilitators basic computer skills so that they themselves will enter this information at local internet cafes using a password protected online database.

Currently ABC employs the use of a CMS to increase awareness of the plight of Haitian Dominicans through its solidarity network, news listings and plans to incorporate its video on YouTube next week. The website also serves to share its one-of-a-kind literacy methodology at no cost to other non-governmental organizations in downloadable pdf format.

WHAT WE NEED:

With a total budget of under $10,000 reaching over 100 families it is easy to see that much can be done with very limited resources. Project ABC is in need of seed funding for its sustainability effort. Seed funding will go to develop a base of funds for community activiites which cultivate the community leadership of the communities where we work. This includes: trainings on online data entry at local internet cafes (for program evaluation,) incentives for online data entry, drafting of a resource manual for community facilitators, workshop fund from which community leaders can draw for bringing resources and information to their communities. 

Additionally, seed funding will go towards the capacity building component of Project ABC as it shares findings of best practices from its 2007-08 program evaluation, along with its methodology with other NGOs working in bateyes.

Project Details
Project url: 
http://www.proyectoabc.org
Project Assessment
Sustainability Model: 
Project ABC relies on the following four tactics to ensure financial sustainability:1) Focus: "El que mucho abarca poco aprieta" This phrase meaning "if you grab on to a lot you wont hold much" rings true in the communities where Project ABC works because needs are bottomless. Project ABC focuses on literacy and community fostering activities quite simply because it is what we do best.2) Partnerships: Project ABC is now completing its third school year of community-engaged literacy classes. In the past school year enrollment has doubled but the budget has only increased about 20%. Financial sustainability has been achieved in the past by expanding deliberately into communities which have the organization infrastructure for supporting literacy work. This year Project ABC opened four new classes through its partnership with Futuro Vivo. Partnerships have been practical given budget constraints and effective in terms of building community rapport. 3) Diversifying funding sources: Primarily reliant on Proliteracy Worldwide, Project ABC is using social networks and social web to outreach and cultivate increased memberships.4) Quality not size: Expansion is only good if it is sustainable. For this reason Project ABC recognizes that cultivating sound program models is fundamental. 
Project goals: 
As part of its strategic plan, Project ABC has looked 18 months out as to how to improve its model for literacy in the bateyes. This is done first by systematizing past experiences, documenting successes and failures. Then Project ABC will move into decentralization and community capacity building. Throughout the 2007-08 school year this process will be documented and community leaders will be the ones to document it. Finally by the end of the school year Project ABC will evaluate the process and write a report on its findings and bring it to the attention of other practitioners in the field using social web. The 90 day project plan includes all aspects of setting up literacy classes with which Project ABC is familiar: recruiting facilitators, training, purchasing and printing class materials, setting up a proper monitoring system, etc.. In addition the following tasks must be carried out to prepare for decentralization and community capacity buildingSet up online database for student performance dataEnter baseline dataTrain facilitators on useProvide incentive system for accurate data entryCreate a directory of resources and information of services available in Santo DomingoTrain facilitators and community leaders on its useProvide incentive system for workshop development using directoryPublish directory on-line and make available for other NGOS
Identified Obstacles: 
Due to the precarious socio-economic situation in the bateyes the most difficult is over-reliance on key leaders and community facilitators. When facilitators decide to leave the program, the entire literacy class suffersfor lack of a trained, competent substitute. For this reason Project ABC would like to dedicate more funds for training of community leadership development and community capacity building.

Location

Santo Domingo
Dominican Republic
Submitted by emilyabc on April 3, 2007 - 11:14pm

In support of this Initiative

Submitted by MSMNPA on April 12, 2007 - 6:53am.

This project is greatly needed in the Caribbean and should be supported.

Please support Project ABC

Submitted by wroth on April 11, 2007 - 2:56pm.

Project ABC  makes a real difference in the lives of an extremely disadvantaged community.  Haitian-Dominicans are regularly denied citizenship, even if born in the  Dominican Republic, and  face considerable discrimination in the job market and in their daily lives. Residents of bateyes are socially segregated, living in resource-poor isolated communities (now-defunct sugar plantations where Haitians were brought in as cheap sources of labour, then left with no recourse when the planations closed down).  During my time in the Dominican Republic, I had the opportunity to learn about this project and visit one of the bateyes where Project ABC works. This is one of the few opportunities these Haitian-Dominicans have to improve their literacy skills and their opportunities for employment. It is also an important source of self-empowerment and community building. Please help support  the extremely valuable efforts of Project ABC with this vulnerable minority group. -- Dr. Wendy D. Roth, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of British Columbia

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