Three sleek, fat Humbolt penguins tilt their heads and watch curiously as visitors pull up to the Fe y Alegria (Faith and Joy) School in Zapallal, a shantytown that sprawls across the barren desert hillsides 37 kilometers north of Lima. Penguins are an unusual sight in the Peruvian desert; however, this is no ordinary school and the children, like these ocean birds, thrive.
What makes this school unique? A strong sense of community and solidarity. "It is like a second home," said 14-year-old Jaime Tito.
"We each have very little time to make a change in the universe and we are called upon to use our energy to the best of our ability," said Brother Paul McAuley, principal. McAuley, a 47-year-old La Salle brother, has set out to provide opportunities for Peruvian young people. Faith and Joy schools (a Jesuit initiative run by different orders in different locations) exist throughout Latin America, but the Zapallal school has a unique curriculum.
While Peru has experienced macroeconomic improvement over the past seven years, with single-digit inflation and sustained growth in nearly all sectors, daily life continues to be hard. Un- and underemployment among young people ages 14-24 is running at 12.7 and 50.7 percent respectively, and more than 45 percent of the population is living below the poverty line.
However, "positive energy attracts positive energy," said McAuley, who began with 100 students in four classrooms made of tightly woven straw mats in 1990. Today the school has 1,250 students and 41 teachers, and the complex includes brick classrooms, a laboratory, workshops ranging from animal husbandry to carpentry, sturdy young trees, animal pens, corrals, ponds, and a hydroponics complex.
This complex is a striking symbol. A sunlit garden is housed in a hodgepodge of weathered plywood and straw mats. Bright red tomatoes grow in old tires and lush green lettuces demonstrate that it is possible to raise healthy vegetables in nutrient-enriched water.
"The idea is to show that you can grow things in stuff people throw away, with very little room, using only water," said McAuley. The complex has the potential to provide 32,000 lettuces on a monthly basis, using much less water than a regular garden, important in this shantytown where there is no potable water.
"You can do a lot with barely any resources. We are building something new," said student Rodolfo Arquipa. Every possible resource is used. Animal manure fertilizes the plants, and the plants feed rabbits, guinea pigs, goats, and many adopted animals, including five mischievous monkeys. Worm culture turns all organic waste into a rich, dark humus.
"It costs nothing to make. Well, it costs work and imagination," said McAuley, with a grin.
IN THIS DESERT school, every experience is a learning experience. McAuley described a situation involving an unexpected pregnancy.
"The young woman's entire class saw how difficult it was to have a baby, to feed it, clothe it, take care of it. That was a far better lesson than any class on family planning," he said.
"Life is hard here. Every day there are serious problems. We are trying to offer a type of education which is centered on young people and provides them with choices," said McAuley.
Early on the school began to move away from traditional classroom teaching and sought to provide necessary skills for survival.
"We asked ourselves if the students were prepared for the future and the answer was no," he said, so they set out to address this. In their third year of high school, young people opt for pre-university admission or technical training.
"People used to finish school and then start training. Now we begin while we are still at school. We end up being better prepared and one step ahead," said 16-year-old Justo Velasquez.
The system is paying off. Several young people have entered university, bypassing a costly pre-university academy, something almost unheard of in Peru today. Others are making a living as electricians and carpenters.
McAuley, however, is not only interested in job training. His goal is motivation and self-confidence. "When I first arrived here I found young people with such low self-esteem, incredibly low expectations. That's why we started the tree nursery. I wanted to show them that things can change. If trees can grow in the desert, anything is possible."
Pride in the school runs high. "Lots of people can talk. Here there is a lot of action," said 17-year-old Nerida Mallqui.
When asked what he felt was his greatest achievement, McAuley said, "Last year, in a reconciliation exercise a young boy stood up and said, 'I thank God for sending me to a poor school, because I have learned things of great wealth.'"
REBECCA HOWARD is a free-lance journalist based in Lima, Peru. She is originally from Victoria, British Columbia.
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