Girls' education is the world's best investment.

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Guatemalan Girls Are Not in School

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In Guatemala, girls are not traditionally supported in their desire to go to school. Often, when parents have to decide which child to educate on their meager earnings, they prioritize the boys, and the girls get left behind. In some parts of Guatemala (where we work), there is a boy and a half in school for every girl. In Guatemala as a whole, 80% of men are literate, compared to 58% of women.

Educated Girls Change the World

According to a growing number of experts, “girls’ education is the world’s best investment with the widest ranging returns” (What Works in Girls’ Education). Educating girls

  • improves the health and survival rates of infants and children
  • leads to higher rates of school attendance and completion in the next generation
  • improves the status of women within families, communities, and the political arena
  • and much more!

The Thousand Girls Initiative

Help empower a new generation of educated Guatemalan women! The Thousand Girls Initiative is a massive expansion of the Rise Youth Development Program that will help 1,000 girls and 250 boys across the country rise out of poverty for good.

Never Forgetting the Boys

Why include 250 boys in the Thousand Girls Initiative? We believe that all children born into the cycle of poverty deserve the opportunity to rise above their current circumstances. Plus, when girls and boys learn together, they learn from each other, too.

Sponsor Now

Sponsor a girl or boy and help empower a new generation of educated Guatemalan women!

See All Students

Other Ways to Help

Become a GroundBreaker

Help an entire community entire the Rise Program and unlock the potential of the students living there!

Become a Padrino

Sponsor a class of 10-15 Rise scholars as they journey to graduation.

Donate

Become a one-time or monthly donor and help build a new generation of educated women in Guatemala!

Girl Advocates

Check out a few thoughts from supporters like you.

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Girl Gone Travel

Carol Cain

“As someone who has personally experienced poverty on an extreme level as a child, I can say that the thing that always gave me hope and ambition was the promise I had of an education.”
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Scripps Lifestyle Expert for Travel Channel

Ryan Van Duzer, video journalist

“I’ve seen firsthand how a single scholarship can transform an entire family, let alone how it builds endless confidence in the recipient.”
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Stuff You Should Know Podcast

Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant

“The Thousand Girls Initiative is very cool. Education is one of the best investments you can make in the developing world.”
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The National

Matt Berninger

“Places where women and girls don’t get the same opportunities as men to educate themselves are very often the places in the most trouble.”

Ready to Join the Thousand Girls Initiative?

Sponsor a Student