The Light and Leadership Initiative
2015 Annual Report
Our Mission Statement:
The Light and Leadership Initiative's mission is to respond to the needs of the women in the Ate-Vitarte district of Lima, Peru in their struggle out of poverty by improving the availability and quality of education offered to women and children. Through workshops and classes, women are empowered to better care for themselves and their families by improving both their physical and emotional well being, as well as advancing their skills in the workforce. Children are offered similar opportunities and learn the value of education and respect for one's community. We believe the women and children of the Ate-Vitarte district will become positive leaders for change through love, support, and education.
Photo credits: Bismarck Rojas, Christine White, Katie Ehrlich, Lara DeVries, Sofia Perhomaa, Skyler Stevenson Cloth appearing in this report are all samples of our artisan goods.
Letter from the Executive Director Dear Friends of LLI, We’ve finished up yet another amazing year here at LLI. Thanks to your support, we celebrated six years of programming, which included over 10,000 classes offered to women and children in Huaycán. In 2015, we were able to continue this success and also make some big changes to improve our existing programs. In July 2015, we opened up our new Kids’ Center, located in the heart of Huaycán, making our education programs as accessible as possible to women and children from every part of Huaycán. The new Kids’ Center is doing great things for LLI: it has created a strong sense of community among our students (and teachers) and has allowed us to increase programming for fundamental programs such as reading and math. Kids ages 7-12 years old come here seeking opportunities to learn, but also to make friends. Women, ages 18 years and older, join us on the weekends for biweekly workshops and community events. We also put ethical volunteering at the forefront of our agenda, beginning a life-long process of continuous examination of our practices within our education programs, but also our volunteer program. In 2015, we introduced a discussion series called Civic Reflection and thus, have been encouraging reflective thought among our international and local volunteers. By doing this, LLI is demanding a stronger profile of volunteers involved in community development at LLI. We introduced LLI’s artisan product line “Huaywasi” to the world in the Fall of 2015. Together, with the help of volunteers working alongside our female artisans, we developed new, exciting products and laid out a plan for growth for the following years. 2015 was an important step for sustainability for not only our women’s program, but also Light and Leadership as a whole. We thank you as donors, and as friends, for your support in 2015 and look forward to our continued success in the next year! Sincerely, Lara DeVries
2015 GOALS SET AND MET In 2015, here is how we met some of our primary goals: > Reforming our math program
We restarted our math program in April 2015 as a drop-in homework hour, allowing us to reinforce what our students are learning in school
ABOUT LLI LLI serves the Huaycan community in the outskirts of Lima, Peru, working together to bring free afterschool and weekend education programs to children, teens and women since 2009. We offer over 60 classes, workshops, and events weekly to over 160 participants who come from all over HuaycĂĄn and the surrounding areas. > Increasing communication with parents
We started having 3 annual parent meetings for each zone in which we work, and started offering weekly parent hours in our Kids’ Center.
> Increasing ethical standards & reflecting on our processes internally
We now have monthly civic reflection discussions for all volunteers, and started monitoring and evaluation processes that improved our ability to obtain informed consent and timely feedback.
Where We Work Huaycรกn was founded in 1984 as a result of a massive wave of migration to Lima. The city of Lima was unprepared to provide the resources and support migrants needed and as a result, many communities - Huaycรกn included - sprang up during this time with little assistance from the central government. The majority of these migrants came from poor rural areas after being displaced from their means of living and support systems, due to a variety of factors including the Shining Path terrorist group. For this reason among others, Huaycรกn to this day struggles with poverty and assimilation into a more integrated economic system. It also receives very limited assistance from the government or other non-governmental organizations for basic needs such as education, health, and infrastructure.
LLI & Youth Education The poverty in Huaycán is apparent in its school system. Based on LLI’s staff research, the average Huaycán child between the ages of 6-17 will go to school 5 hours a day Monday through Friday in classrooms that have up to 40-45 students per class. There are many inconsistencies in school schedules as class is often cancelled due to events, workshops, holidays, and a variety of other reasons, leaving children with far less full school days than is ideal. The order in which subjects are taught is also up to each individual school, meaning the same children in the same grades may be learning completely different things. Here at LLI, we believe poverty is much more than an economic definition and is directly linked to educational development, resources and opportunities provided to each family. The Light and Leadership Initiative’s goal is to provide the consistency and educational reinforcement that many of our participants lack in their schools. Our classes either teach the same subjects that are taught in school or provide school homework assistance, and we focus on key areas that students struggle with in school, such as math, English, and language arts*. We also provide a safe, positive environment for participants to learn and grow in, which not only encourages personal development but also prevents engagement in high risk behavior.
*Reference: LLI school visit data; LLI homework hour daily attendance log
LLI & Women’s Empowerment According to Perú’s National Institute of Statistics and Information Technology (INEI), in the most recent survey of gender indexes in 2013, 78% women in Lima have completed secondary schooling, which is a little under 10% less than men in Lima. 40% of women in Lima are also categorized as unemployed, as opposed to 22% of men. This statistic is also skewed because of social division in Lima - Huaycán’s data would more closely reflect rural statistics as the majority of parents of LLI participants are from provinces other than Lima. The average secondary school completion rate for women in provinces in Peru other than Lima is 51%, while for men it’s 66%. We have two primary goals for our women’s education programs. First, to provide women with a source of free education where often many women were unable to go onto higher education after secondary school, or even not able to make it through or to secondary school. Second, to create community among female participants and LLI members, promoting a strong sense of self and well-being. Also according to INEI, in 2014 nearly one third of women throughout Peru were living without personal income, meaning they were dependent on others for day-to-day costs. Along those same lines, over one third of women throughout Peru who reported themselves to be single or divorced also report that they live without personal income. In Lima that number is even higher, nearly 41%.* Our Huaywasi artisan program’s main purpose is to provide women whose livelihood is creation of artisan goods with the income and the resulting independence that many women in Peru lack. Our Huaywasi artisans’ income provide them with the income they need to not only pay the bills, but to fulfill the needs and desires of their families.
*Reference: https://www.inei.gob.pe/estadisticas/indice-tematico/brechas-de-genero-7913/
2015 at a glance We opened our Kids´Center on the main street of Huaycán in August of 2015 where we held childrens’ classes and women’s program workshops. With the Kids’ Center came...
92% 75%
more library classes more art & chess classes
40% more math classes 25% more English & sports classes
3 new classes for kids:
yoga, board games, and homework hour!
15% more children’s program participants
More
classes & variety of classes per child
After opening our Kids’ Center, we were able to have twice the
amount of workshops for women
and workshops for our loyal attenders rose
from once a month to twice a week. We saw a growth in the number of attending women as well as women coming from new parts of HuaycĂĄn!
We added parent hours on Saturdays and Sundays at the Center, which increased our communication with parents and created a central space for inquiries about our programs
2015 at a glance ctd. In April, we introduced our math homework help program. Since opening the program our participants have completed over 450 homework assignments during our math classes! In August, Christine White became our first Teen Center Coordinator. With Christine, the center saw a 62% increase in participants and 15% increase in daily attendance since 2014! In September, our chess program volunteer Nina Toija created two 12-week curriculums that we now use to teach basic and intermediate chess tactics. We started extending the 12-week curriculum into other programs as well. In November, we introduced the new brand for our artisan program, Huaywasi, through its Facebook page: www.facebook.com/huaywasi. This was the beginning to introducing Huaywasi to sales in the Lima area.
2015 children’s program ENGLISH
706 classes held 65 students served
READING
389 classes held 225 students served
ART
191 classes held 199 students served
CHESS
170 classes held 185 students served
SPORTS
140 classes held 38 students served
MATH
139 classes held 71 students served
HOMEWORK 78 classes held 47 students served HOUR
BOARD 37 classes held 29 students served GAMES COMPUTER 22 classes held 30 students served CODING
In December of 2015, we surveyed kids from our programs in the Kids´ Center and Zones Z 232, Los Alamos, and S and their parents. 44 children´s program participants and 48 parents responded to these surveys.
improving physical & emotional wellbeing 92% of parents stated that they felt that LLI has helped their children in their daily life, especially with being responsible in daily chores in the house or for school. 96% also stated that participating in LLI has helped their behavior to improve and helped their child to come out of their shell.
advancing future workforce skills 100% of participants stated that participating in LLI programs helped them with their school homework. 96% of parents responded that LLI has helped their child in school, especially with classes like English, math, and language arts and 96% of parents stated that their children’s ability to complete homework has improved.
learning the value of education & respect for community When asked ¨Tell me 3 things you like most about the NGO and its classes”, the majority of children responded that they enjoy the classes, especially English and art. Many children also responded that they like their teachers because they make class fun and they treat them well.
2015 teen program 413
English classes
40
English students
73
events and workshops for teens in various themes <<<<<
244
participants
16
= average daily attendance for the center
In December of 2015, LLI administered an end of year survey to 25 frequent teen center participants.
improving physical & emotional wellbeing 85% of teens stated that LLI programs have helped them in non-academic aspects of their life, in that attending the teen center has helped them to make friends, with their family relationships, to express themselves, and to feel confident.
advancing future workforce skills
learning the value of education & respect for community
100% of survey respondents stated that they feel attending the LLI teen center has helped them improve in school.
32% responded that they have volunteered in LLI’s children’s programs.
68% of teens responded that their favorite thing to do in the center was learning English or reading, programs that significantly impact academic performance.
When asked “what is your favorite thing to do in the center”, the majority of teens responded “English class”, and many also mentioned using the library and computers
2015 womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s program
19
business and and business career career development development workshops workshops
78
workshops and events
2
computer literacy certificates issued
14
Art & & Art Expression Expression workshops workshops
35
healthy living workshops
103
total participants
10
social events & miscellaneous workshops
In December of 2015, we surveyed a core group of women’s program participants. 12 women responded to the survey.
improving physical & emotional wellbeing 92% of women stated that they feel that LLI has helped them in their daily life, specifically because of the benefit from learning new things. Over 90% of respondents stated that they attend LLI workshops because they like to learn, for personal development, or they find the workshops interesting. Close to 80% of women stated that they attend because they have or have made friends in the program.
advancing future workforce skills 1/3rd of our women’s program participants stated that they have been attending our workshops for 3 or more years. 62% of women surveyed stated that they “definitely agreed” that they benefited from business and career development workshops, while 100% of women stated that they “definitely agreed” or “agreed” that they liked and benefited from all the workshops.
other benefits In 2015, we created a new 8-week beginner computer certificate class, from which 2 women graduated that year. 1/3rd of frequently attending women’s program participants have also taken computer literacy courses with us, in which they created their first email and Facebook accounts.
Huaywasi, LLI's Artisan Line, began as an extension of our Women's Empowerment Program. We work with 6 women in HuaycĂĄn each of whom make their own unique, hand-made products: hand-loomed bags, clothing & knit-wear, ceramics, and other accessories. As part of Huaywasi, artisans are required to attend at least one education workshop with LLI per month, though most attend more frequently - 1/3 of frequent womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s program participants also participate in the artisan program. Each artisan is paid a fair wage based on the amount of hours that they spend working on each product, and the cost of materials required to make that product. The profits that we generate from selling artisan products go directly into funding the Women's Empowerment Program and other educational programs with LLI.
2015 financials LLI received a total $101,726.18 in donations in 2015, marking the first year reaching over $100,000 in donations in a fiscal year. LLIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s total expenses totaled to $97,799.84. Please view the breakdown below:
Organizational Expense Breakdown In 2015, LLI volunteers donated a total $30,355.64 of program fees to support the volunteer program*. Program fees made up for 31% of LLIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s total donation income. All staff members work directly to uphold and maintain the volunteer program.
Volunteer Program Expense Breakdown The largest expense of the program fee was directed towards supporting salaries of four local Peruvians (two of whom were provided benefits for 6 months of out the year) and provided 15% of the salary of one international staff member. *Note: A total of $31,492.14 donations of program fees were paid to LLI in 2015, yet $1,136.50 were refunded due to an emergency.
2015 international volunteers A huge thank you to our wonderful 2015 volunteers for their time and energy! Angela Euashka Anna Malsky* Anna Nachbor Carlos Cruz Charlotte Mann Christina Tarazi Christine White Diana Ventura Donya Jahedmanesh Ellie Johnson Ennisofia Salmela Gabrielle Hickmon Gail Sarracco Haley Frankenburg Heidi Wist Issy Harding Javier Janik* Jeremy Marchand
Jess Ibri Jessica Mataka Jocelyn Foshay John Zorko* Josh Khosrofian Kamla Mistry Karilynn Burks Karolyn Krol Keeley Madison Kylee Crook Lauren Schroeder Lauren Waag Marc Nottelmann Martha Freites Melody Pabon Mervi Koivupalo Natalie King Nate Johnson Rachel Rach
USA 74% Finland 9% England & Germany 4% each Austrailia, France, Mexico, Switzerland 2% each *names in bold are returning volunteers
Nina Toija Onetress Robinson Rachel Rach Raul Salinas Raziel Fuertes Rich Johnson Rose Petrozzino Sally Creevy Sarah Hurd Sarah Hutchinson Shaun Phillips Shelby O'Brien Sofia Perhomaa Tamara Durzi Tanya Garcia Thierry Ibri Tim Caldwell Zach Cooperstein
2015 local volunteers Our local volunteers make our math, teen music, & women’s program run they logged over 190 volunteer hours in 2015. We greatly appreciate our local Peruvian volunteers! Betty Flores Carlos Huarcaya Celia Magnasco Cristofer Chagua Salinas Gabby Quevedo Israel Rivera Italo Flores Silva Jackie Flores
Jessica Petterson Job Cuya Janampa Jose Espiritu Saenz Karen Lauro Loli Apaéstegui Luis Limachi Caballero Marco Santos Wall Maria Alejandra Marsical
Noeliz Ascarza Blanco Orson Laurente Paulo Valverde Arias Raffo Apaéstegui Rina Melany Gilbonio Meza Tyrone Ramirez Zevallos Vanhaner Ramírez Chávez Yesenia Gilbonio Arias
Volunteer Spotlight - Jose Saenz Jose logged the most hours of any local volunteer in 2015 -
56.5!
He helps out several hours almost every week in our math homework help program. We asked Jose to tell us a little about himself and why he volunteers: Throughout my life I was struck by the great problem with the quality of education in Huaycán's schools. The main reason for volunteering is to be able to help the community through even offering some education for children here.
To volunteer and share in the experience of teaching classes with people from all over the world is a wonderful experience that motivates me to keep helping, since watching people coming from so far away and happily working hard for the program incentivizes me to join their cause.
2015 employees and board We are very excited to say that by formalizing The Light and Leadership Initiative as a Peruvian organization, we were able to offer our long-time employees Queta & Dina benefits such a pension plan, paid vacation & holiday bonuses.
Enriqueta (pictured left)
Known as Queta in our volunteer program, Queta joined our team back in 2009 and is now our close neighbor in Huaycรกn. Her official duties involve keeping the volunteer house and the program spaces clean and free from Huaycรกn dust, but as anyone who has volunteered with us knows, she goes above and beyond her formal job responsibilities. She often helps volunteers when they are sick with herbal remedies and does many behind-the-scenes jobs for the anniversary celebrations year after year. Queta lives with her husband and her two daughters, both training to be nurses.
Dina (pictured right)
Dina has a long history of being LLI's outstanding cook. She joined our team in 2010 when we were in need of someone we could depend on and who also happened to have excellent skills in the kitchen! Dina is a resident of Huaycรกn and comes by the volunteer house to prepare meals six days a week. She has mastered just about every classic Peruvian dish and we love her for it. She's a dedicated mother of three and is always ready for a good laugh. Without her, our organization and volunteer program would simply not be complete--or as delicious.
2015 Board Members Lara DeVries - President Louella DeVries -Treasurer Amy Ravenhorst -Secretary Angie Ortega Allyson Murphy Monica Kendall Karolyn Krol
2015 donors Donors are the foundation of our work. We thank you, our dedicated donor, for your steadfast support in 2015 and years before. Thanks to you, we’ve offered 2,086 classes, workshops, and events for women, children & teens 2015, making it possible for hundreds of participants to access free education programs and resources. Furthermore, thanks to you, we are more than just education programs; we are a community. We’ve created a family here in Huaycán, where everyone comes together in support of education. You are the reason that’s possible.
Thank you.
2015 Alpaca Club Our Alpaca Club is made up of donors who have committed to recurring donations. Allyson Murphy Amy Ravenhorst Angie Ortega Anonymous Antonio Prado Arlo and Rena Compaan Bruce and Mary Leep Christopher Estrada Ed Tomasik Elizabeth and Bubba Phelps Gerardo Ruiz Helen Rollberg James Chronister Jeffrey Bauer Joan Wolfe John Zorko Jonathan DeVries Keith Ekman Lara DeVries Mary and Allan DeLange Mathew White Matthew Lowczyk Michael and Louella DeVries Palmer Corson and Cara Solle Rich and Karen Solle Tim and Krystin Caldwell Victoria and DJ Hampton and Fourth Presbyterian Church Olive Branch Counseling Associates, Inc.
2015 donors Aardema, Raymond and Sharon Abbott, Anita Ahvenj, Anneli Andre, Patrice & Catherine Andrew Anonymous UPS Anonymous UPS Anonymous Arnold & Arnold LLP Babuta, Elizabeth Bafia, Jolanta Bara, Ed and Barb Barber, Pat Bauer, Jeffrey Bejar, Joyce Bellin, Stephen and Julane Bergstrand, Lauren Bils, Amanda Blitz, Rachel Blom, Don and Jeneane Boersma, Tom Bolan, Kristin C. Boss, Kenneth Bottner, Nancy Bowles, Steven Breems, Helen & Bradley Brondani, Julia Brown, Paul Burks, Karilynn Burns, Jordan Bussema, Kenneth & Evelyn Bust, Jose Bykerk, Jonathan and Rachel Caldwell, Tim and Kristyn Campbell, Naomi Carley, Jill Carpenter, Jeff and Virginia Cavette-Malone, Angela Chakos, Tom & Jan Chamberlin, Molly Charney, Anna Chronister, James Colosimo, Ron and Mary Lynn Compaan, Rena Cooperstein, Zachary Corson, Palmer Corvino, Angela Creevy, Sally Crook, Brady & Melissa
Crook, Woodrow Cyron, Tatiana DaBECCA Natural Foods, Inc. Dady, Brian Decker, Eugene and Beth DeJong, Cindy DeJong, David & Gwen DeJong, David and Karen DeLange, Allan and Mary Demer, Dorothy Dengerink, Kathleen Derdak, Judith DeVries, Jeff DeVries, Jeff, Susie Knickerbocker DeVries, Jonathan DeVries, Lara DeVries, Michael and Louella DeVries, Patricia Dise, Rita Dolores, Juris Donald, Nelson Donovan, Clare Dow, Thomas & Theresa Downs, Jason Drozd, Philip Dudek, Debra Durkin, Bridget Durzi, Tamara Ehrlich, Katie Eigenbauer, Elizabeth Ekman, Keith Estrada, Christopher Euashka, Robert & Angela Findlay, Jack & Lynne Finegan, Jeffrey Foshay, Julie Foster, Eloise Fox, Stephanie Frankenberg, Haley Free Range Office, LLC Froelich, Jody Fulton, Arsenio Gill, Patricia Gonzalez, Christian Gonzalez, Maria Goodshop Grode, Tammy Groenewold, Donald & Cindy Groenewold, Maribeth Groupon
Gundlach, Joan Guzman, Juan Haagen, Beth Hadl, Debra Hampton, Victoria & DJ Hansen, Stephanie Harding, Elizabeth Harding, Isabelle Hayashi, Kenneth Hess, Nicholas Hesse, Michael Hickmon, Gabrielle Holak, Betsy Hoogland, Thelma Howe, Aaron Huber, Diana Hughes, Kim Huizenga, Steve & Terry Hurd, Roger & Elizabeth Hutchinson, David & Helen Hutchinson, Sarah Salome Ibri, Thierry & Shelly Ikonen, Anne-Mari Jabaay, Harry & Marlene Jones, Roz Jongsma, Dr. Art & Judy Kallio, Jyrki Karmanian, Trevor Kendall, Monica Kent, Stephen Kern, Robert Khosrofian, Aram & Ooi King, Natalie Kiser, Jeannette Klooster, Dale & Nina Knickerbocker, Robert Knisley, Eric Knowlton, Katie Koivupalo, Mervi Komori, Nakano Koonce, Carolyn Koonce, Felicia Kooy, Curtis & Joanne Krol, Karolyn Krol, Maria Labarbera, Natalie LaGory, Susanna Larsen, David Leep, Bruce & Mary
2015 donors Leslie Kee Lima, Melanie Loupee, Karen Lowczyk, Matthew Lowry, Elizabeth Lubben, Georgia Mack, Lisa MacKinnon, Heather Madison, Keeley Madison, Marla Majewski, Raymond & Debra Malmi, Jaakko Malsky, Leo & Anna Mann, Charlotte Marshall, Christine Marttila, Mike Mastalerz, Arkaduisz Matthew, Philip McCoy, Matthew McGregor, Kate McIntyre, Christopher McKinney, Sharon Medema, Glenn & Mary Medema, Sara Medina, Camille Melinn, Hannah Melvin, Ashley Melvin, Patricia Mendoza, Elizabeth Meyer, Gary & Beverly Meyer, Maureen Miroballi, Lindsay Mone, Andrew Mueller, Lisa Mulvey, Kalli Murphy, Allyson Nachbor, Anna Nelson, Michael Niemi, Nancy Nordan, Sarah O'Toole, John Ochoa, Yanela Olive Branch Counseling Associates Opie, Kris Ortega, Angie
Ortega, Erasmo Pabon, Melody Pape, Jason Pence, Emily Perhomaa, Sofia Peterson, Donna Petrozzino, Mark & Catherine Phelps, Elizabeth & Bubba Phillips, Holly Pisco, Michael Pohjonen, Ville Pope, Kristi Poreeng, Brad & Helen Powell, Rick & Patti Prado, Antonio Pyhnen, Sari Rach, Marie Radja, Jerome & Sandra Raengpradub, Arth Rancour, Tracy Ravenhorst, Amy Rea, Sandra Retsema, Donald & Elizabeth Rice, Bob and Gail Richardson, Sue Robinson, Julie Robinson, Onetress Rollberg, Helen Roos, Eija Rosales, Augustine Rothstein, Ann Ruiz, Gerardo Salmela, Mirja Saracco, Gail Schulert, James Shanks, Philip Sharp, Elaine Silverman, Susan Sinclair, Gary & Jean Smith, Kyle Snook, Helen Marie Solle, Rich and Karen Spacek, Diane Sucheta, Misra Sunderland, Laurie Sweet, James
Sweet, Jessica Sweet, Linda Sytsma, Louis Sziler, Tom Szofko, Gabriella Talbert, Natalie Tarazi, Jamal & Hilary The Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago Thompson, Priyanka Tkach McShane, Katherine Toija, Nina Tomasik, Ed Torras, Oriol Caudeville Trezek, Laura Tuman, Christopher Tuttle, Shawna Tuuli, Alan Unearth The World LLC Unknown Donor Van Der Bill, Lisa Van Heest, Sheila Van Wyck, Marv & Helen Vander Laan, Al & Betty Vanzanten, Donna & Anthony Ventura, Diana Voss, Andrew & Jane Vree, Bill & Sandy Walovitch, Danielle Ward, Mark & Annalee Washington, Latoya Wasielewski, Carl Wheeler, Matthew White, Beverly White, Matthew White, Timothy Winfrey, Travis Winiecki, Kurt Wistrand, Heidi Wolfe, Joan Wristrand, Heidi Yankle, Allyon Yates, Allison Brooke Yezdi, Anita Zajac, Magdalena Zorko, John