Rowan High School
In western Ecuador, in Manabi, south of the city Olmedo, is a little town called Las
Mercedes. Some of the young parents in this town (really mainly a rural area) have
banded together to create their own local private school for the middle grades and high
school grades. They felt the regular schools were too far away and the education offered
there too poor. The parents each take some time to be with the students and teach them.
They have gone about this project legally and properly, securing all government
permissions and authority for their “college.” It seems that the government has supported
them somewhat, granting permission and perhaps some financial help. The exact
measure of the grants are unknown by me.
They call this college the “Rowan Foundation” after the soldier that was charged with
carrying a message to a Cuban commander. It seems the country was soon to be under
attack and the USA wanted to alert this commander to the situation, so sent this soldier.
Without knowing where to go to find the commander, Soldier Rowan went and found
him with his army and faithfully delivered the message.
Mercedes. Some of the young parents in this town (really mainly a rural area) have
banded together to create their own local private school for the middle grades and high
school grades. They felt the regular schools were too far away and the education offered
there too poor. The parents each take some time to be with the students and teach them.
They have gone about this project legally and properly, securing all government
permissions and authority for their “college.” It seems that the government has supported
them somewhat, granting permission and perhaps some financial help. The exact
measure of the grants are unknown by me.
They call this college the “Rowan Foundation” after the soldier that was charged with
carrying a message to a Cuban commander. It seems the country was soon to be under
attack and the USA wanted to alert this commander to the situation, so sent this soldier.
Without knowing where to go to find the commander, Soldier Rowan went and found
him with his army and faithfully delivered the message.
In July the call for help with their computer courses came to my ears from another
friend that had visited their part. In the beginning they had one computer. An English
teacher came for two weeks of volunteered time and donated a laptop computer.
Another family donated four laptop computers. Though these laptops are older, they
are “Toughbooks” and thus ideally suited for this kind of environment. Each afternoon
Lester boxes up the laptops into a large suitcase and carries them home with him. The
classrooms are too porous and the walls too weak to safely leave the computers there.
The machines have Microsoft Windows 2000 in English installed and Microsoft Office
2003 in Spanish. The local government has promised some kind of Internet
connectivity in two months. When this comes they will be able to activate the
advanced features of MS Office and Outlook. With their connectivity they hope also to
create a peer-to-peer network. That file sharing, printer sharing, and Internet
connection sharing will be a great advancement for them!
Being with them for a week and teaching the students in the mornings and the teachers
in the afternoons has been a great experience for me. Their hospitality, enthusiasm, and
appreciation are outstanding. A parent’s greatest work is really not his career but the
wisdom and care imparted to his children, no?
Russ F. Hall
friend that had visited their part. In the beginning they had one computer. An English
teacher came for two weeks of volunteered time and donated a laptop computer.
Another family donated four laptop computers. Though these laptops are older, they
are “Toughbooks” and thus ideally suited for this kind of environment. Each afternoon
Lester boxes up the laptops into a large suitcase and carries them home with him. The
classrooms are too porous and the walls too weak to safely leave the computers there.
The machines have Microsoft Windows 2000 in English installed and Microsoft Office
2003 in Spanish. The local government has promised some kind of Internet
connectivity in two months. When this comes they will be able to activate the
advanced features of MS Office and Outlook. With their connectivity they hope also to
create a peer-to-peer network. That file sharing, printer sharing, and Internet
connection sharing will be a great advancement for them!
Being with them for a week and teaching the students in the mornings and the teachers
in the afternoons has been a great experience for me. Their hospitality, enthusiasm, and
appreciation are outstanding. A parent’s greatest work is really not his career but the
wisdom and care imparted to his children, no?
Russ F. Hall
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