Monday, December 9, 2013
Final Exams coming up!
Fran has two more weeks of school and things are heating up for her! Last night she burned a CD with 74 pages of homework for her class in Discrete Mathematics!!! This morning she is sitting for the final exam she has been worried about for a few weeks now, and has been running on about 4 hours of sleep per night for more than a week. Last week she had 2 exams in Programming and got a 10 in one (the highest grade possible) and an 8.4 in the other. She needs to get 7 or higher to pass.
As I mentioned in earlier blogs, this first year is like a hazing -- she has to pass ALL of her tests and classes or she's out. That's not going to happen to Fran, but the school will make it's first cuts next week, and Fran thinks there will be 5 to 8 students in her class who will not be coming back after the end of this semester. I have a feeling it will be more than that. The last cut of first-year students will be made at the end of the upcoming second semester, and usually only about half survive. They set it up that way, so they are only left with the best candidates for graduation. After this year, she will be allowed to flunk one class per semester and still be able to take it over again....but I can't see that happening with Fran!
Christmas is approaching. I am going to the States for 3 weeks and will unfortunately miss her final week of exams. But Steven and Leeann will be here and I will be notified about how she did. Steven set her up with Skype, made an adjustment to make her computer run faster, and hooked her up somehow so that he will be able to "see" her computer from his computer.
Fran will visit her family for about 5 days over Christmas and will be back here on the 30th when I arrive back from the States.
For the whole month of January (which she has off) she will be attending English classes 5 days a week at the Lending Library and no doubt studying in advance for the next semester.
So I will be signing off from the blog until about January 2. We hope you have a wonderful holiday and hope to see you back here soon.
Peace to all!
As I mentioned in earlier blogs, this first year is like a hazing -- she has to pass ALL of her tests and classes or she's out. That's not going to happen to Fran, but the school will make it's first cuts next week, and Fran thinks there will be 5 to 8 students in her class who will not be coming back after the end of this semester. I have a feeling it will be more than that. The last cut of first-year students will be made at the end of the upcoming second semester, and usually only about half survive. They set it up that way, so they are only left with the best candidates for graduation. After this year, she will be allowed to flunk one class per semester and still be able to take it over again....but I can't see that happening with Fran!
Christmas is approaching. I am going to the States for 3 weeks and will unfortunately miss her final week of exams. But Steven and Leeann will be here and I will be notified about how she did. Steven set her up with Skype, made an adjustment to make her computer run faster, and hooked her up somehow so that he will be able to "see" her computer from his computer.
Fran will visit her family for about 5 days over Christmas and will be back here on the 30th when I arrive back from the States.
For the whole month of January (which she has off) she will be attending English classes 5 days a week at the Lending Library and no doubt studying in advance for the next semester.
So I will be signing off from the blog until about January 2. We hope you have a wonderful holiday and hope to see you back here soon.
Peace to all!
Friday, November 29, 2013
Only 3 more weeks for this semester!
Fran has been studying straight for 4 hours, discrete math. She just took a short break and is now back at it. She has a jacket on because it is really cold in Oaxaca tonight! Sometimes Fran is in her room most of the day (on her "days off") studying. Last night she told me she'll will sit with a single problem for hours until she figures it out. If she starts to go crazy, she'll go visit her friend the Oaxacan dentist for some friendly conversation, and then return refreshed to dig in again. Sometimes she goes to the web for help, or to the Oaxaca Learning Center which is only 2 blocks away. I remain in awe.
Monday, November 11, 2013
Steven and Leeann visit and help with our Squeeze-By Budget!
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| Steven, Fran and Leeann after our lunch meeting at the Zocalo, Oaxaca |
Greetings friends!
First a little catch-up on how Fran has been doing. She is still among the top 2 or top 5 in her class depending on the week, and that is out of 30 students. One of her most valuable learning skills is her willingness to ask questions when she doesn't understand, and to connect with her teachers. The professors at this institution do the opposite of coddling their students! They ask students to leave the class if they are behind on their homework, or if they yawn. They are not allowed to take notes, so the students must understand and be able to discuss the material in class. That means they are going to fail if they don't ask questions and speak up -- the prof assumes that they understand everything perfectly unless they indicate otherwise. So Fran speaks up all the time, and is often asked to come to the front of the class to explain problems to the others. If the teacher gives 20 pages of homework, Fran completes all of them -- as opposed to other students who may complete 3 or 4.
Her weak subject was investigation (research) and methodology, but not any more. She met with this professor for 3 hours recently, consulted a few times with Marisol, and is now on-track and enthusiastic.
Budget!
Numbers are not my strong suit, so when Leeann and Steven showed up from Oregon I jumped at the opportunity to get their moral support on creating a budget that will get Fran through the next 4.5 years to her engineering degree.
THE SQUEEZE-BY BUDGET REVEALS THAT WE NEED TO PLUG A MONTHLY HOLE OF $45 IN ORDER TO SQUEEZE BY.
We currently have the donors that are providing rent free accommodations (me), and 2 regular donors providing a total of $75/month, which almost covers her food bill.
Here's the Squeeze-By Budget, faithfully copied out by me on a restaurant placemat...
Monthly Budget for Fran: (current exchange rates)
$250 pesos / $18.92 dollars Pro-rated tuition ($3,000 pesos per year, payable $1,500 in
July and January) NOT ACCOUNTED FOR
$1000 pesos / $75.70 dollars Transportation (COVERED for the next 3 years by a grant)
$1000 pesos / $75.70 dollars (Minimum) Food COVERED
$500 pesos / $37.34 dollars Materials and small Expenses NOT ACCOUNTED FOR
$2,500 pesos ($207.66)
NEEDED TO CLOSE THE GAP: $56.26 dollars PER MONTH (Tuition + Materials)
Therefore, we are hoping to find donors who will commit to a small monthly donation to make up part of this gap. Of course, one-time donations are always welcome too, and I will be able to reduce the gap. Also, remember that this is a SQUEEZE-BY budget -- it doesn't include clothes, any entertainment, or (God forbid) medical expenses should they arise. It's also possibly short in the food department, as this also includes toiletries, toilet paper (ha!) and laundry soap.
Please consider a donation, and perhaps you have one contact or friend who might also be interested in helping.
Donations can be made by going to this site:
http://
THANK YOU ALL!
LORENA AND FRAN
Monday, November 4, 2013
Days of the Dead in Oaxaca! Fran's progress!
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| Fran in front of the church at Santa Ana Zegache, restored by the local people under the supervision of the artist Rudolfo Morales. |
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| Fran at the Days of the Dead altar to artist Rudolfo Morales at his home in Ocotlan. |
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| Sand tapete (carpet) in front of the Basilica de Soledad, Oaxaca |
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| Fran and Catrina, after the performance of "Copijcha" at Teatro Macedonia Alcala |
Last week Fran and I attended a production of "Copijcha" at the Macedonia Alcala (see clip above), and then we went for a day trip with David to Velasco, Zegache and Ocotlan. She hasn't seen any of the surrounding ruins or pueblos, so I am going to try and gradually introduce her to the rich heritage that surrounds her in Oaxaca.
Fran continues to excel in her school work and to impress her teachers. She tells me she is among the top 5 or so people in her class in terms not only of grades, but of turning in her work dependably and keeping up with all the requirements. She is putting a lot of time and energy into her calculus class and it is really paying off -- that includes attending evening classes at the Learning Center, participating in a study group several times a week, and disappearing into her room for many hours to study. She seems to have a boundless appetite for learning.
I am leaving for the States on December 11 and will return on December 30. Fran will be here except for a few days to visit her family. Marisol will be going to Mexico City around the 20th of December for about 3 weeks, so it looks like Fran will have the place to herself for 10 days, minus the time she is with her family. Leeann and Steven will be visiting during that time, and so Fran will not be completely on her own. During their visit they will sit down with me to help work out a budget covering at least the next year. We will let you know what Fran needs to get her through this period.
Fran gets 2 months off school, and I am trying to find an opportunity for her to spend the month of January learning English. This week I will be checking if she can attend the English class at the Oaxaca Library 4 days per week, which would be the most reasonable (financially) alternative. I have my fingers crossed that Jay, the teacher, will not be on vacation. Fran still does not speak a word of English because she has been putting all her energy into her other classes.
She is still enjoying her new glasses, and realizing how much she wasn't seeing without them! Sometimes a little thing can change your life!
If you are new to the blog and would like to contribute to Fran's education, I have periodically posted information about the Oregon Credit Union where she has her education account. Or you can contact me by leaving a message on the blog.
Until next time....
Tuesday, October 15, 2013
Many kinds of learning
Fran living in this house (apartment, rather) with me and Marisol continues to be a learning experience for all of us, one that will affect many others I imagine, like the ripples flowing out from a drop of water.
I am continually learning about Fran, her ideas, her understanding, her needs, her interests and goals across a complex communication barrier on both sides. I do not speak fluent Spanish, and though she understands a little, she speaks no English.
But this limitation is more complex than it seems because Fran speaks in a speech pattern common to the villages, I am told by other Oaxacan friends. It is not the custom to either ask or answer a question directly, using the fewest words possible (especially when the other person does not speak your language fluently). The point is talked around and at lightening speed, taking many side roads and seemingly random tangents, and is frequently lost on me as I wait for clues about the the answer to my question, or the subject matter at hand.
Sometimes I try and get her to the point, when it is important. Often I decide to be satisfied with the general idea in the interest of time. Marisol, who speaks perfectly understandable Spanish, French, and English encounters the same phenomenon with Fran, but because both of them speak Spanish (remember that Fran is not a native speaker of Spanish -- she learned it only a few years ago) she can steer her to the point more easily.
Not surprisingly, though Fran is doing fantastically with numbers, she is not appreciating (and struggling, I think) with classes like Ethics, where she is expected to express thoughts and opinions both in front of the class and on paper. I suggested to her that the more challenging something is, the more she should dedicate herself to mastering it. The idea of professors at the school is that it is not enough to to master the technical skills of engineering; the student must be able to communicate effectively with bosses, clients, and co-workers.
This week instead of classes, all the IT engineering students are meeting and hearing lectures from various professionals in their field. But their teachers are e-mailing homework assignments which they turn in all week. So far, I really like the way this course of study is going for Fran.
Had an interesting conceptual event with Fran the other day that taught me something about assumptions. She expressed a concern to me that her eyes may be getting worse from wearing her new glasses, not better. I should have picked up on something right away, but didn't. She said when she took her glasses off, her eyes were much worse. What I learned later was that she somehow had the understanding that wearing glasses would improve her vision, literally. Her dentist, who has become another mentor, cleared it all up with her.
The other night, Fran and Marisol had a long talk about Fran's fear that her excellent grades will draw negative attention from other students and make them suspect her of cheating. Marisol talked to her about owning her accomplishment and sharing her secret (constant study, and attending night classes at the Learning Center) so that they will understand how she has achieved her grades. Marisol talked a lot about being proud of her own accomplishments as they accumulate, partly because when she becomes a professional she can't expect to hear much praise from bosses or co-workers. How to be proud without being arrogant. These lessons are just as important as anything she is learning in school, of course!!
Once or twice a week Fran receives counsel from Marisol about things that have come up -- sometimes points on how to conduct research (academic advice) and other times situations with her teachers or other students. Marisol is very busy with her own professional life, and she has been very generous and helpful to Fran.
This is just a taste of the rich garden of learning that we are all harvesting from in this house. Thanks yet again to those of you whose contributions are making this environment for Fran possible.
I am continually learning about Fran, her ideas, her understanding, her needs, her interests and goals across a complex communication barrier on both sides. I do not speak fluent Spanish, and though she understands a little, she speaks no English.
But this limitation is more complex than it seems because Fran speaks in a speech pattern common to the villages, I am told by other Oaxacan friends. It is not the custom to either ask or answer a question directly, using the fewest words possible (especially when the other person does not speak your language fluently). The point is talked around and at lightening speed, taking many side roads and seemingly random tangents, and is frequently lost on me as I wait for clues about the the answer to my question, or the subject matter at hand.
Sometimes I try and get her to the point, when it is important. Often I decide to be satisfied with the general idea in the interest of time. Marisol, who speaks perfectly understandable Spanish, French, and English encounters the same phenomenon with Fran, but because both of them speak Spanish (remember that Fran is not a native speaker of Spanish -- she learned it only a few years ago) she can steer her to the point more easily.
Not surprisingly, though Fran is doing fantastically with numbers, she is not appreciating (and struggling, I think) with classes like Ethics, where she is expected to express thoughts and opinions both in front of the class and on paper. I suggested to her that the more challenging something is, the more she should dedicate herself to mastering it. The idea of professors at the school is that it is not enough to to master the technical skills of engineering; the student must be able to communicate effectively with bosses, clients, and co-workers.
This week instead of classes, all the IT engineering students are meeting and hearing lectures from various professionals in their field. But their teachers are e-mailing homework assignments which they turn in all week. So far, I really like the way this course of study is going for Fran.
Had an interesting conceptual event with Fran the other day that taught me something about assumptions. She expressed a concern to me that her eyes may be getting worse from wearing her new glasses, not better. I should have picked up on something right away, but didn't. She said when she took her glasses off, her eyes were much worse. What I learned later was that she somehow had the understanding that wearing glasses would improve her vision, literally. Her dentist, who has become another mentor, cleared it all up with her.
The other night, Fran and Marisol had a long talk about Fran's fear that her excellent grades will draw negative attention from other students and make them suspect her of cheating. Marisol talked to her about owning her accomplishment and sharing her secret (constant study, and attending night classes at the Learning Center) so that they will understand how she has achieved her grades. Marisol talked a lot about being proud of her own accomplishments as they accumulate, partly because when she becomes a professional she can't expect to hear much praise from bosses or co-workers. How to be proud without being arrogant. These lessons are just as important as anything she is learning in school, of course!!
Once or twice a week Fran receives counsel from Marisol about things that have come up -- sometimes points on how to conduct research (academic advice) and other times situations with her teachers or other students. Marisol is very busy with her own professional life, and she has been very generous and helpful to Fran.
This is just a taste of the rich garden of learning that we are all harvesting from in this house. Thanks yet again to those of you whose contributions are making this environment for Fran possible.
Monday, October 7, 2013
October progress report
Hi friends,
I have been somewhat negligent writing the blog recently -- changing my artistic focus, building up new inventory, market research, and tying up loose ends has taken up time I don't even have! But I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.
But enough excuses!
Here is one of my biggest heroines, Fran, in her new winter jacket and new glasses. Every day she comments on how they make her life easier! Fran is studying to be a computer engineer, and she is taking pretty much wall-to-wall math classes -- Calculus, Discrete Math, and Fundamentals of Programming, along w/business ethics and Banda Guerra (she plays the drum while marching), a required extra curricular class which was the only one left after the juniors and seniors had their pick!
Just for the record, Fran is near or at the top of her class. She has accomplished this by constant study and wise use of resources, including a study group, tutors, and hours and hours in her room.
This is the crucial year. She must pass all of her classes in order to continue, and she is making sure that she does much more than that!
As some of you may know, here in the south of Mexico we have been caught between hurricanes on both coasts, and the constant rain is just beginning to flee the glorious months of October, November, December and January. Fran checks with her parents by phone and to date I have heard nothing about mudslides or the road being washed out. One or two of her fellow students made the mistake of trying to visit their village during the worst of the storms and were trapped there, unable to attend classes. They may have had to drop out. Her teachers do not accept any excuses, no matter how dire, for not attending class and completing all the work.
I still pinch myself that things are going so well. We have enough money to complete this school year, but I am beginning to anticipate next year. I will be in touch soon about that. So far, among our few donors, we have those who have given once, those who have given twice, and those who have committed to automatic monthly contributions of between $25 and $50. For those who have given once or twice, we hope that you will not forget us next year. For those of you who give monthly, we can't thank you enough for the feeling of stability that gives us!
Fran just returned from her study group and went back to her room to study. But she has a smile on her face! Thank you.
I have been somewhat negligent writing the blog recently -- changing my artistic focus, building up new inventory, market research, and tying up loose ends has taken up time I don't even have! But I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.
But enough excuses!
Here is one of my biggest heroines, Fran, in her new winter jacket and new glasses. Every day she comments on how they make her life easier! Fran is studying to be a computer engineer, and she is taking pretty much wall-to-wall math classes -- Calculus, Discrete Math, and Fundamentals of Programming, along w/business ethics and Banda Guerra (she plays the drum while marching), a required extra curricular class which was the only one left after the juniors and seniors had their pick!
Just for the record, Fran is near or at the top of her class. She has accomplished this by constant study and wise use of resources, including a study group, tutors, and hours and hours in her room.
This is the crucial year. She must pass all of her classes in order to continue, and she is making sure that she does much more than that!
As some of you may know, here in the south of Mexico we have been caught between hurricanes on both coasts, and the constant rain is just beginning to flee the glorious months of October, November, December and January. Fran checks with her parents by phone and to date I have heard nothing about mudslides or the road being washed out. One or two of her fellow students made the mistake of trying to visit their village during the worst of the storms and were trapped there, unable to attend classes. They may have had to drop out. Her teachers do not accept any excuses, no matter how dire, for not attending class and completing all the work.
I still pinch myself that things are going so well. We have enough money to complete this school year, but I am beginning to anticipate next year. I will be in touch soon about that. So far, among our few donors, we have those who have given once, those who have given twice, and those who have committed to automatic monthly contributions of between $25 and $50. For those who have given once or twice, we hope that you will not forget us next year. For those of you who give monthly, we can't thank you enough for the feeling of stability that gives us!
Fran just returned from her study group and went back to her room to study. But she has a smile on her face! Thank you.
Saturday, September 14, 2013
New Glasses!
Fran is on her way today to get her first prescription for glasses. She has been getting to school very early so that she can secure a seat in the front row of her class because of her vision. She can see to read, but anything much beyond 7 or 8 feet starts to get blurry. So this will be a very positive change for her! I will of course put up photos of her in her new glasses as soon as they arrive in about a week.
Meanwhile, her studies are going well and she is busy every waking minute with them. She is just in the middle of her first round of exams for all her classes and seems to have set up an effective system of solo and group study with a small circle of classmates who are equally studious. The last of this round of exams is this coming Tuesday (she has Monday off for Independence Day) in calculus. Of all her teachers, she likes her calculus teacher the best. He is very strict and clear about his demands, and the students must step up or leave the class -- she likes that!
I continue to be amazed by Fran's determination, organization, and resourcefulness. Not being particularly skilled in math, I am in awe of how confident she is in this subject, and how much she seems to actually enjoy it!
It has been very rainy here in Oaxaca for about a week, and we are expecting at least another week of the same. The satellite image shows a huge storm system over southern Mexico extending from the Caribbean to the Pacific. We are soggy! Fran washes all her clothes by hand, but now she is hanging them on the covered part of the utility patio and they turn sour unless she uses my big fan to keep the air circulating. I do look forward to the end of the rain so we can go out and appreciate the brilliant green reward in the landscape!
Can't believe that October is just around the corner!
Meanwhile, her studies are going well and she is busy every waking minute with them. She is just in the middle of her first round of exams for all her classes and seems to have set up an effective system of solo and group study with a small circle of classmates who are equally studious. The last of this round of exams is this coming Tuesday (she has Monday off for Independence Day) in calculus. Of all her teachers, she likes her calculus teacher the best. He is very strict and clear about his demands, and the students must step up or leave the class -- she likes that!
I continue to be amazed by Fran's determination, organization, and resourcefulness. Not being particularly skilled in math, I am in awe of how confident she is in this subject, and how much she seems to actually enjoy it!
It has been very rainy here in Oaxaca for about a week, and we are expecting at least another week of the same. The satellite image shows a huge storm system over southern Mexico extending from the Caribbean to the Pacific. We are soggy! Fran washes all her clothes by hand, but now she is hanging them on the covered part of the utility patio and they turn sour unless she uses my big fan to keep the air circulating. I do look forward to the end of the rain so we can go out and appreciate the brilliant green reward in the landscape!
Can't believe that October is just around the corner!
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
First "real" week
For the two previous weeks, Fran was getting her feet wet at her school, along with all the other new students. They attended one survey class 4 hours a day, 5 days a week.
But on Monday this week, they were all thrown into the official beginning of the semester, and Fran went from being an intrepid beginner to a long-distance runner. Last night she was up until 3 completing assigned homework from 5 classes. She said she was tired in the morning, but by the time I saw her at about 5 this afternoon, she was wide-eyed and energetically focused on her new regime.
She said that her professors, especially her calculus teacher, said that he didn't want to hear any complaints about the workload, and that it was to be expected that students would work long hours and stay up late. He said if he caught anyone yawning or drifting off he would send them home immediately! No eating in class. No trips to the bathroom. Alert attention at all times!!!
Fran said that the students at her school are not sloppy. Their hair is neatly combed and cut. No baggy pants or too much make-up on the girls. The teachers are nice, but extremely strict. A high level of discipline is expected...not like the students and faculty at Benito Juarez University (Fran's comparison). I was glad to hear all this, and I think Fran appreciates the strict expectations too.
She signed up for a math tutoring class at the Learning Center, 3 evenings per week. And she attended for the first time this evening, taking along her calculus homework. For now, she thinks that calculus is going to be her most difficult class, so I am glad she has found a way to get some extra help.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays she is in class from 10 to 5 with no break. So I am trying to make sure she has some kind of snack in her purse.
Fran is very very happy, even though she is on the tips of her toes to meet the challenge. It is a joy to see!
But on Monday this week, they were all thrown into the official beginning of the semester, and Fran went from being an intrepid beginner to a long-distance runner. Last night she was up until 3 completing assigned homework from 5 classes. She said she was tired in the morning, but by the time I saw her at about 5 this afternoon, she was wide-eyed and energetically focused on her new regime.
She said that her professors, especially her calculus teacher, said that he didn't want to hear any complaints about the workload, and that it was to be expected that students would work long hours and stay up late. He said if he caught anyone yawning or drifting off he would send them home immediately! No eating in class. No trips to the bathroom. Alert attention at all times!!!
Fran said that the students at her school are not sloppy. Their hair is neatly combed and cut. No baggy pants or too much make-up on the girls. The teachers are nice, but extremely strict. A high level of discipline is expected...not like the students and faculty at Benito Juarez University (Fran's comparison). I was glad to hear all this, and I think Fran appreciates the strict expectations too.
She signed up for a math tutoring class at the Learning Center, 3 evenings per week. And she attended for the first time this evening, taking along her calculus homework. For now, she thinks that calculus is going to be her most difficult class, so I am glad she has found a way to get some extra help.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays she is in class from 10 to 5 with no break. So I am trying to make sure she has some kind of snack in her purse.
Fran is very very happy, even though she is on the tips of her toes to meet the challenge. It is a joy to see!
Sunday, August 25, 2013
Fran's Schedule, First Semester, Start date August 26, 2013
There are 2 groups of students in the new crop of engineering majors, and Fran is in Group B. Just last night she received her schedule for the semester, which she will begin tomorrow morning. For some strange reason her first class (Mate Discretas) is listed last, starting at 8 a.m. As you can see, she will be attending 4 days a week, and will have Friday through Sunday off, a great schedule. She has been sizing up the other students for study partners and told me tonight that one of the most intelligent ones happens to live fairly nearby. She is at the computer now, and it is 10:34 p.m. Too excited to go to bed.
Thursday, August 8, 2013
Panic! Miracle! A New Life Begins!
Last Saturday, Fran (upon my advice) decided to quit her job at the grocery store. She was working long hours and getting paid so little it really wasn't worth the stress and the lost time for study. Literally, some months she made less than $40. That was a big turning point! Now she can focus on getting through the first year.
She only had one more piece of paper to turn into the school before the start of classes, and for that she had to (and wanted to) to to her village for a medical checkup and to visit her family for the last time until Navidad. So she left Saturday night and returned Wednesday afternoon -- yesterday.
PANIC!
When she checked the school's website, she discovered that her first class had already started on Monday!!!! We don't know how she overlooked that, but it happened. Websites here are not easy to navigate, and Fran just didn't click herself to the right place to find the announcement of the early start. We all do things like this occasionally, at least I do!
Needless to say, neither of us slept last night.
MIRACLE!
I woke up at 6:30 this morning!
A NEW LIFE BEGINS!
With our hearts and stomachs in our throats, Fran and I took a collectivo to her school to try and straighten things out. We got there an hour before class began and started walking around, asking questions, waiting -- and then repeated this regime several times until class began. We could not find the director of the program, so decided to take our chances with the teachers...one of whom frowned and shook his head, but let her in. I sat outside her classroom for 4 hours, and then we both went to find the director of the program to make sure she could still continue attending. You can probably tell that it turned out well. I think my presence helped.
And so, Fran's new life began with a BANG, about 10 days earlier than we had anticipated.
Her new regime starts very early tomorrow morning, and it involves a long commute, but the beauty and peace at her school are well worth the wait. There was a hand-painted sign in the grass, under 2 lovely shade trees in front of her classroom that said (in Spanish of course) -- "A school without green would be like a river without water."
Thank you so much for helping to make this happen.
More next week!
She only had one more piece of paper to turn into the school before the start of classes, and for that she had to (and wanted to) to to her village for a medical checkup and to visit her family for the last time until Navidad. So she left Saturday night and returned Wednesday afternoon -- yesterday.
PANIC!
When she checked the school's website, she discovered that her first class had already started on Monday!!!! We don't know how she overlooked that, but it happened. Websites here are not easy to navigate, and Fran just didn't click herself to the right place to find the announcement of the early start. We all do things like this occasionally, at least I do!
Needless to say, neither of us slept last night.
MIRACLE!
I woke up at 6:30 this morning!
A NEW LIFE BEGINS!
With our hearts and stomachs in our throats, Fran and I took a collectivo to her school to try and straighten things out. We got there an hour before class began and started walking around, asking questions, waiting -- and then repeated this regime several times until class began. We could not find the director of the program, so decided to take our chances with the teachers...one of whom frowned and shook his head, but let her in. I sat outside her classroom for 4 hours, and then we both went to find the director of the program to make sure she could still continue attending. You can probably tell that it turned out well. I think my presence helped.
And so, Fran's new life began with a BANG, about 10 days earlier than we had anticipated.
Her new regime starts very early tomorrow morning, and it involves a long commute, but the beauty and peace at her school are well worth the wait. There was a hand-painted sign in the grass, under 2 lovely shade trees in front of her classroom that said (in Spanish of course) -- "A school without green would be like a river without water."
Thank you so much for helping to make this happen.
More next week!
Thursday, July 25, 2013
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
SHE PASSED!!!!!!!!!!!!!
FRANCISCA PASSED HER EXAM AT THE TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY!!!! SHE WAS ONE OF ONLY 70 WHO MADE IT, AND SHE WAS #20 ON THE LIST. YOU ARE LOOKING AT A FUTURE COMPUTER SCIENCE ENGINEER!!!!
Monday, July 15, 2013
More moral support for Fran!
Again with permission, I am publishing another statement, from another one of Fran's donors, in support of Fran's bright future!
"It seems to me that Fran is a remarkable person and has both an unusually good attitude and also the energy/perseverance necessary to achieve her goals in life. On her way I would expect that she will continue to have many more 'tests', both literally and figuratively; that seems to be a given for her. Naturally she will suffer disappointment but I can't help but think that any 'setbacks' are only one more way that she paves her own way forward. Without knowing her all that well, I don't see her as having much of a victim mentality; she's more an example of "What does not destroy me makes me stronger"."
-- Steve
"It seems to me that Fran is a remarkable person and has both an unusually good attitude and also the energy/perseverance necessary to achieve her goals in life. On her way I would expect that she will continue to have many more 'tests', both literally and figuratively; that seems to be a given for her. Naturally she will suffer disappointment but I can't help but think that any 'setbacks' are only one more way that she paves her own way forward. Without knowing her all that well, I don't see her as having much of a victim mentality; she's more an example of "What does not destroy me makes me stronger"."
-- Steve
E-mail in support of Fran
I am posting this with Sheela's permission. I wanted it to be here for Fran to read now and in the future, when she has become a successful, financially secure professional woman!!!
Dear Fran,
Dear Fran,
PLEASE! Do not be discouraged about the Benito Juarez exam. From what Lorena wrote, you failed before you even began....as did hundreds of other students. You have chosen a wise, long, difficult, though rewarding journey. I'm positive that all your friends out here in cyberland, will stand behind you 100%! Do try to be positive and BELIEVE that we supporters stand behind you and BELIEVE in you and your journey.
Now! onward and upward, dear girl. If you can, I want to see you smiling right now! One foot ahead of the other gets the job done....no matter how long it takes. No matter how long it takes,
I will be donating to your fund, for whatever needs you have.
A huge hug for you, Fran, I'm so proud of you!
Sheela
Sunday, July 14, 2013
Results from Benito Juarez University
The short story is: Fran's number did not appear in the list of those who passed. She is disappointed of course, but I am not -- and the reasons why are illustrated in the long story...
The long story is: (I will list the facts, you, kind reader will be able to link them in your own mind).
In the list of numbers, whole blocks in the sequence were missing. Perhaps one number out of each large block of several hundred appeared.
Fran was told before she took the test that some families pay 40,000 pesos to the director BEFORE the test to assure that their kids get in. Her dentist personally knows 2 families, one who paid, and one who did not -- the one who paid got in.
The test is not difficult. Thousands of kids take it, and each one pays for the privilege. The school profits from offering the test to thousands of students while accepting very few.
Her teacher at the Center told her that about 70% of the students are already chosen because their family paid "donations" to the school BEFORE the test, so they can only fill 30% of the open spots. A good number of these are filled by brothers and sisters of existing students.
So...
Although Fran feels let down, neither of us intended for her to attend Benito Juarez. She has momentarily forgotten that she only signed up for this test to practice for the much more difficult one she took for the Tech college a week later. But she is resiliant, and will recover.
Since the next test was more difficult, and this was her first year trying to take it with only 3 months of intensive study, we are talking about alternatives for her in case she doesn't pass. She said that she met several students at both tests who were taking them for the 2nd and 3rd time. We don't intend to give up either!!! (Although there is no sense in re-taking Benito Juarez acceptance is based mostly on mordidas).
But as we wait for the upcoming results of her final test, Fran has started to look for other courses in private schools she might take over the course of the year to keep her on course for retaking the exam next year. We are in it for the long haul, and we hope you continue to give her your support and encouragement.
More soon!
The long story is: (I will list the facts, you, kind reader will be able to link them in your own mind).
In the list of numbers, whole blocks in the sequence were missing. Perhaps one number out of each large block of several hundred appeared.
Fran was told before she took the test that some families pay 40,000 pesos to the director BEFORE the test to assure that their kids get in. Her dentist personally knows 2 families, one who paid, and one who did not -- the one who paid got in.
The test is not difficult. Thousands of kids take it, and each one pays for the privilege. The school profits from offering the test to thousands of students while accepting very few.
Her teacher at the Center told her that about 70% of the students are already chosen because their family paid "donations" to the school BEFORE the test, so they can only fill 30% of the open spots. A good number of these are filled by brothers and sisters of existing students.
So...
Although Fran feels let down, neither of us intended for her to attend Benito Juarez. She has momentarily forgotten that she only signed up for this test to practice for the much more difficult one she took for the Tech college a week later. But she is resiliant, and will recover.
Since the next test was more difficult, and this was her first year trying to take it with only 3 months of intensive study, we are talking about alternatives for her in case she doesn't pass. She said that she met several students at both tests who were taking them for the 2nd and 3rd time. We don't intend to give up either!!! (Although there is no sense in re-taking Benito Juarez acceptance is based mostly on mordidas).
But as we wait for the upcoming results of her final test, Fran has started to look for other courses in private schools she might take over the course of the year to keep her on course for retaking the exam next year. We are in it for the long haul, and we hope you continue to give her your support and encouragement.
More soon!
Sunday, July 7, 2013
Exams completed!
It's been ages since I've updated the blog, I know. Just got back from almost a month in the States with family.
Fran took two entrance exams while I was gone. Marisol and her mother were here in Oaxaca during that time and they took good care of Fran, making sure she was adequately fed.
Fran said that the first exam at Benito Juarez University was easy and only two hours long. But the second one two weeks later at the Tech University was four hours, 500 questions, and more difficult. She was worried that there were an unexpected 35 questions in English which she may have answered incorrectly, but seemed reasonably confident about the math section. Her instructors at the Oaxaca Learning Center encouraged her not to give up hope because she may have passed on the basis of the math.
We will find out July 7th about whether she is accepted at Benito Juarez (the lesser of the two institutions) but have to wait until August 9th to see if the Tech University accepts her. We have our fingers crossed!!
Fran continues to study every day, even though there is a break at the Learning Center. If she manages to get in the Tech University she will still have another test to take for final entrance a month after classes start. She can't afford to relax now!
While I was gone, Fran went up to the mountains to visit her family for 2 days. It is a long 6 hour journey, the last part on roads that often wash out in the current rainy season. Here is a photo she sent to my Facebook from that trip. Her older sister took the photo. Fran and her two brothers are accompanied in this photo by younger cousins.
I want to take this opportunity to again thank all of you who have been supporting Fran's education with your well wishes, donations, and occasional gifts. If you would like to help this or next month, she really needs a good pair of black leather shoes to wear on her job, where she stands 6 hours a day at the cash register All she has are some old black boots which have a raised heel and are very uncomfortable. Good shoes are just as expensive here as they are in the States, unfortunately, which make them a precious commodity!
I will be sure to update you all with news of her examinations, if not sooner! For now, peace and smiles from Oaxaca!
Fran took two entrance exams while I was gone. Marisol and her mother were here in Oaxaca during that time and they took good care of Fran, making sure she was adequately fed.
Fran said that the first exam at Benito Juarez University was easy and only two hours long. But the second one two weeks later at the Tech University was four hours, 500 questions, and more difficult. She was worried that there were an unexpected 35 questions in English which she may have answered incorrectly, but seemed reasonably confident about the math section. Her instructors at the Oaxaca Learning Center encouraged her not to give up hope because she may have passed on the basis of the math.
We will find out July 7th about whether she is accepted at Benito Juarez (the lesser of the two institutions) but have to wait until August 9th to see if the Tech University accepts her. We have our fingers crossed!!
Fran continues to study every day, even though there is a break at the Learning Center. If she manages to get in the Tech University she will still have another test to take for final entrance a month after classes start. She can't afford to relax now!
While I was gone, Fran went up to the mountains to visit her family for 2 days. It is a long 6 hour journey, the last part on roads that often wash out in the current rainy season. Here is a photo she sent to my Facebook from that trip. Her older sister took the photo. Fran and her two brothers are accompanied in this photo by younger cousins.
I will be sure to update you all with news of her examinations, if not sooner! For now, peace and smiles from Oaxaca!
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Exams approaching
We have been busy -- and sometimes social media gets the best of me! I'm trying to take more time out to actually live.
Fran is gearing up for her two exams on June 15 and June 27.
The first one is at UABJO (Benito Juarez University here in Oaxaca) which she is taking mainly for practice for the second one. This exam is only 2 hours long and includes only Math and Spanish -- I guess they want to make sure the incoming student will be able to understand the lectures. Like many young people from remote villages, Fran only learned Spanish 2 years ago, so she is studying hard for that exam, and it is challenging. Luckily our roommate Marisol is not only a fluent speaker and a teacher, but is also in the process of getting her Master's in Spanish!
The second one is at the Technological Institute of Oaxaca in Xoxo (about 20-30 minutes away by bus) where she hopes to go. That exam is 4 hours long and includes Spanish, English, Math (including physics, algebra, functions, geometry -- the whole banana), history, science (biology, etc.) and culture. This exam is 4 hours.
Fran's classes at the Learning Center started up again -- her evening schedule when she took the job at Soriana was interrupted for a few weeks. She is still utilizing the UNAM prep classes on youtube to prepare her for the exams, but now has teacher back-up to take her up to the exam date. UNAM is the top university in Mexico, and one of the best schools in the world, and she is very lucky that they have put up these extensive classes on the internet!!!
Unfortunately I will be in the US visiting family during both of the exam dates, but Marisol and David will be here for backup if she needs anything. She's going to be in touch with me by email after both exams. PLEASE KEEP YOUR FINGERS CROSSED FOR FRAN!
She won't learn the results until sometime after I return to Mexico, on July 3.
Fran is gearing up for her two exams on June 15 and June 27.
The first one is at UABJO (Benito Juarez University here in Oaxaca) which she is taking mainly for practice for the second one. This exam is only 2 hours long and includes only Math and Spanish -- I guess they want to make sure the incoming student will be able to understand the lectures. Like many young people from remote villages, Fran only learned Spanish 2 years ago, so she is studying hard for that exam, and it is challenging. Luckily our roommate Marisol is not only a fluent speaker and a teacher, but is also in the process of getting her Master's in Spanish!
The second one is at the Technological Institute of Oaxaca in Xoxo (about 20-30 minutes away by bus) where she hopes to go. That exam is 4 hours long and includes Spanish, English, Math (including physics, algebra, functions, geometry -- the whole banana), history, science (biology, etc.) and culture. This exam is 4 hours.
Fran's classes at the Learning Center started up again -- her evening schedule when she took the job at Soriana was interrupted for a few weeks. She is still utilizing the UNAM prep classes on youtube to prepare her for the exams, but now has teacher back-up to take her up to the exam date. UNAM is the top university in Mexico, and one of the best schools in the world, and she is very lucky that they have put up these extensive classes on the internet!!!
Unfortunately I will be in the US visiting family during both of the exam dates, but Marisol and David will be here for backup if she needs anything. She's going to be in touch with me by email after both exams. PLEASE KEEP YOUR FINGERS CROSSED FOR FRAN!
She won't learn the results until sometime after I return to Mexico, on July 3.
Monday, May 6, 2013
The Last Appeal for 2013! Please help!
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| Fran on her way to work today. Braces are compliments of a local dentist who has taken her on as a free patient! |
(See update below)
Fran now has a grand total of $6,000 pesos (about $500) remaining in her account. She needs more to get her through her first year. We will have an exact budget in about a week, but I didn't want to wait to send out a request for donations. We know she will need at least $4,000 pesos more (about $330).
I contribute by giving her housing and food, but I have found that I am going to need to start asking her for a small amount of rent ($400 pesos per month, about $33) just so I can stay even, without going into the red -- which I have been doing. I live on Social Security only, with a little help from my son and daughter. So I cannot contribute more than this to her education.
I hope you can help, even if only a little. If 33 people each donated $10 that would get us to our goal.
How to contribute:
You can send a check to:
OCCU
PO Box 77002
Springfield, OR 97475-1046
Make the check out to:: Francisca Education Fund, acct. # 1067571
THANK YOU!
UPDATE:
Fran has signed up and paid for 2 entrance examinations, one June 7 and the other later in the month. Though her job is very complex and she walks a long way to and from (to save money) she still finds significant time to put into her studies.
If she passes into the University in Xoxo, she will have only completed step one of a two-step weeding out process. Everyone who passes takes a preparatory class together and then they complete a final exam for entry into the engineering program. Only those who pass that one actually get in.
She has heard that there is a first-time fee for enrolling in Xoxo (pronounced like a slightly gutteral "ho ho") that may be 3,000-5,000 pesos, or even a bit more. She will confirm this along with other costs. Our intention is to make a final budget as soon as final figures are available from the school. For this she will have to make at least one visit to talk to various people to get accurate information. I will update with final figures just as soon as I can, and hopefully within a couple of weeks.
Fran continues to be a fine roommate and she and Marisol get along famously. It's good for her to have a fellow Mexicana living here, especially one with an advanced degree!
Please ask questions or make comments whenever you like. I am hoping that we can form a small community to send Fran all the way through her education. I am not sure if I will be able to afford keeping Fran with me for more than a year, but we will see. One problem that may arise is that the landlord may raise the rent since I have 3 people living here. Fran and Marisol are friendly with the janitor (and spy) that comes to clean the patio here everyday, so hopefully he won't raise a red flag.
Meanwhile, Marisol is teaching every day and focusing on finishing her Master's in Spanish. She was just accepted to another Master's program in French, and will be starting that program in the Fall. I am working on my sea anemone vases (see my other blog: http://yaxchi.tumblr.com/) and my felting projects (http://joyoffelting.blogspot.mx/) and marketing on Etsy https://www.etsy.com/shop/Yaxchi?ref=si_shop
So I have been incredibly busy. All three of us have been, I should say!
Saturday, April 20, 2013
Best way to send money to Fran
Fran has an education account in Oregon to hopefully provide for her ongoing needs over the next 4 years. Any time you want to donate, you can mail a check to the Oregon Community Credit Union. The account will be used for tuition, books, fees and to help her with rent and food.
Please mail donations to:
OCCU
PO Box 77002
Springfield, OR 97475-1046
Make the check out to:: Francisca Education Fund, acct. # 1067571
Thank you for your continuing generosity. I hope you will consider telling one other person about Fran's journey and invite them to our circle of support.
OCCU
PO Box 77002
Springfield, OR 97475-1046
Make the check out to:: Francisca Education Fund, acct. # 1067571
Thank you for your continuing generosity. I hope you will consider telling one other person about Fran's journey and invite them to our circle of support.
She registered for her entrance exam
This is Fran at her computer this morning, studying math for her upcoming exam. Just yesterday she found this UNAM site that prepares students step by step for the math part of their exam, which is more rigorous than the one she will face in June.
She divides her study between mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, history and Spanish grammar. This morning she had a long and intensive session.
She finally managed to get all of her papers together to submit to the college and pay for her exam day before yesterday. On Monday, via internet, she will get the official study guide.
The advice and counsel she has been getting as she prepares for her exam has been all over the map, from "It's WAY too difficult -- you should find a college with an easier exam and forget this idea" ... to "It's going to be much easier than you think -- they just want students!" She knows that not all students are good students, and doesn't believe any of the extreme positions. All she can do is study every day and do her best, but it is a large body of material!!
Her complex job is beginning to be more routine, which is allowing her to dedicate more of her brain to her studies -- the timing of all that was fortunate because starting now she will need every ounce of concentration she can muster.
Also, as I have mentioned before, a dentist in Oaxaca has taken her under his wing and has been providing her lots of expensive care for free. She just got a full set of braces, which is why she didn't want to turn around and smile for this photo! They will be removed in about 4 months, though for the life of me I don't understand why she needed them!
Fran's education is, of course, much more than what she is gleaning from all her studies. Yesterday, for instance, we had a hotdog and she tried mustard for the first time. This is only one of the many valuable things she is learning from me....
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Fran needs an on-call math tutor
Though Fran's math skills (believe it or not) seem to beyond many people here and in the states, her challenge is only going to get harder as she attempts to get her engineering degree.
We are now accelerating the search for a local, Spanish-speaking, math whiz to be available to her as needed. If you know anyone who might know anyone, please let me know!
Or, if you can contribute towards paying the tutor, we can really use the help. If we can pay someone an hourly rate, we'll probably be more successful. Thanks for your consideration!
We are now accelerating the search for a local, Spanish-speaking, math whiz to be available to her as needed. If you know anyone who might know anyone, please let me know!
Or, if you can contribute towards paying the tutor, we can really use the help. If we can pay someone an hourly rate, we'll probably be more successful. Thanks for your consideration!
Photos of Fran's village and surrounding country
Fran was born in the district of Cuicatlan in the southern Cañada region in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico, a mountainous area covering 4,300 square km. The Cañada, named after a hot low canyon that links the Valley of Oaxaca to the south with the Valley of Tehuacán in Puebla, was the major Precolumbian route between the two valleys. It was conquered and controlled by the early Zapotec state based on Monte Albán at some time around 300 BC.
...and what is most amazing to a Oaxacan archeology nerd like me, is that it is thought that the the original inhabitants of Oaxaca actually walked through this canyon to populate the Valley of Oaxaca!!!
Her village, San Pedro Cuyaltepec, is situated in the municipality of San Juan Tepeuxila of which her uncle is now the President (this position rotates). According to a source on the web, Cuyaltepec has 646 inhabitants, though Fran thinks it is more like 2,000, and it stands at 6,800 feet above sea level.
Her village was populated in the early 1600s when the Spanish conquerors displaced everyone living at a more fertile and advantageous location. They destroyed the original village and created a prosperous finca or ranch that still grows coffee and other crops. This older location may be where the community still has rights to a plot of land...I will check on this.
Education in her village is limited to elementary school. Students who want to attend beyond that (and there are few) have to make complicated arrangements with relatives or strangers to let them live with them during the week, and then return home to their parents on the weekend. If they want to go to high school, they have to move to a village 4 hours away and live independently. That's what Fran did. Though she is only 23, she has lived on her own for 7 years on nothing but her wits.
There is only one person (other than Fran) in her village that speaks Spanish. Fran has told me that if a Spanish speaking stranger arrives in town -- a rare occurrence, everyone scurries home and hides to avoid them.
Women in the village are often married at age 14 and start having children. By their mid-twenties they may have 3-5 children who they can barely feed. Between the lack of nutrition, the hard work, and continuous childbearing the young women are often unhealthy -- with dry hair that falls out, rough and blotchy skin, and bad teeth. Many villagers have teeth missing. There is no medical or dental care close to the village, and no one can afford it anyway.
The men in the village are uneducated and mostly "borrochos" (drunks). Some of the women are drunks too. I will ask Fran to clarify, but I suspect that they make their own alcohol.
Family food is gathered from the land, not bought in a store. Each villager has at least one plot of land, though they may have to walk an hour or more to get to it. There is also communal land that all the villagers are entitled to use -- but that is a seven-hour walk away. This distant plot is fertile and planted with fruit and coffee, but it is too far away to carry much back to the village. If they walk there, they have to spend the night on the ground, and there are many poisonous snakes there.
There are no animals like chickens or goats allowed within the town's limits and most people are too poor to own animals anyway. Fran's father has spent 200 pesos on a chicken someone brought from Oaxaca. I don't imagine he's done that more than once.
It is a mystery, as always, why some people look around them and can't accept their condition, or the future it implies. Fran was one of those people. She left of village of extreme poverty and suffering with nothing but her youthful energy and intelligence, and so far she seems to be doing just great. Her supervisors at work promoted her more quickly than her workmates and treat her very well. Her teachers at the Learning Center can see how serious and intelligent she is, and go out of their way to help her. I don't know where she learned her organizational and people skills, but she has more of them that most people I know. In other words, no one has to tell her what to do and when to do it. She knows how to buckle down, how and when to take a break, and how to ask for help. She will go far!
Here are some photos of the country around her village, and her village. All are very recent except the one dated 2009.
...and what is most amazing to a Oaxacan archeology nerd like me, is that it is thought that the the original inhabitants of Oaxaca actually walked through this canyon to populate the Valley of Oaxaca!!!
Her village, San Pedro Cuyaltepec, is situated in the municipality of San Juan Tepeuxila of which her uncle is now the President (this position rotates). According to a source on the web, Cuyaltepec has 646 inhabitants, though Fran thinks it is more like 2,000, and it stands at 6,800 feet above sea level.
Her village was populated in the early 1600s when the Spanish conquerors displaced everyone living at a more fertile and advantageous location. They destroyed the original village and created a prosperous finca or ranch that still grows coffee and other crops. This older location may be where the community still has rights to a plot of land...I will check on this.
Education in her village is limited to elementary school. Students who want to attend beyond that (and there are few) have to make complicated arrangements with relatives or strangers to let them live with them during the week, and then return home to their parents on the weekend. If they want to go to high school, they have to move to a village 4 hours away and live independently. That's what Fran did. Though she is only 23, she has lived on her own for 7 years on nothing but her wits.
There is only one person (other than Fran) in her village that speaks Spanish. Fran has told me that if a Spanish speaking stranger arrives in town -- a rare occurrence, everyone scurries home and hides to avoid them.
Women in the village are often married at age 14 and start having children. By their mid-twenties they may have 3-5 children who they can barely feed. Between the lack of nutrition, the hard work, and continuous childbearing the young women are often unhealthy -- with dry hair that falls out, rough and blotchy skin, and bad teeth. Many villagers have teeth missing. There is no medical or dental care close to the village, and no one can afford it anyway.
The men in the village are uneducated and mostly "borrochos" (drunks). Some of the women are drunks too. I will ask Fran to clarify, but I suspect that they make their own alcohol.
Family food is gathered from the land, not bought in a store. Each villager has at least one plot of land, though they may have to walk an hour or more to get to it. There is also communal land that all the villagers are entitled to use -- but that is a seven-hour walk away. This distant plot is fertile and planted with fruit and coffee, but it is too far away to carry much back to the village. If they walk there, they have to spend the night on the ground, and there are many poisonous snakes there.
There are no animals like chickens or goats allowed within the town's limits and most people are too poor to own animals anyway. Fran's father has spent 200 pesos on a chicken someone brought from Oaxaca. I don't imagine he's done that more than once.
It is a mystery, as always, why some people look around them and can't accept their condition, or the future it implies. Fran was one of those people. She left of village of extreme poverty and suffering with nothing but her youthful energy and intelligence, and so far she seems to be doing just great. Her supervisors at work promoted her more quickly than her workmates and treat her very well. Her teachers at the Learning Center can see how serious and intelligent she is, and go out of their way to help her. I don't know where she learned her organizational and people skills, but she has more of them that most people I know. In other words, no one has to tell her what to do and when to do it. She knows how to buckle down, how and when to take a break, and how to ask for help. She will go far!
Here are some photos of the country around her village, and her village. All are very recent except the one dated 2009.
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| Fran's little brother (right) and a friend walking on the main road through Cuyaltepec |
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| Distant view of Cuyaltepec |
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| Street running behind the Municipal Building. Fran's house is out of sight to the right... |
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| New road running into town. Fran once walked all night, alone, on trails to get to her village when she was dropped off on the closest main road. |
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| Fran's uncle, currently serving as the municipal president stands near his truck. Indigenous communities rotate responsibilities every year (i.e. her father was just assigned to take care of the church, ring the bell, help out the priest.) Three years ago five villagers died, including a pregnant woman, when this truck capsized on a narrow curve. Anyone who owns a truck is automatically a main source of transport for the population as their is no public transportation. |
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| The countryside around Cuyaltepec |
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| The Cañada Region |
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Fran's Study!
We've set Fran up to study so that she can use her new computer and turn her chair around to the table behind her. It is a well lit and tranquil place for her to concentrate in the morning -- most of the time. Today it was a little crazy with unexpected visitors. Here are some photos I took about 10 minutes ago of her using tutorials she's found on the internet to help her with math problems.
Upping the ante!
Update: Fran will pay for
her exam between April 15 and May 30, take the exam on June 27, and
start June 27. She made a big decision. They discontinued the major
that was labeled simply "Lic. Informatica" and replaced it with INGENIERÍA INFORMÁTICA, a more difficult course of study that will give her the title of "engineer."
Here are the courses it will include:
http://www.itvalleoaxaca.edu.mx/reticulas/img/inf.html
I would love to hear feedback about this course of study from folks in similar fields -- what you think it might qualify her to do.
It will definitely be more challenging for her, and I can foresee the occasional need for a private tutor. I need to find one before she starts school. Fran does seem to be able to solve most of the mathematical problems she encounters by steadfast effort and ingenuity (she's found some great tutorials in Spanish on the web), but I imagine she will hit a wall or two and need some timely assistance.
She will probably continue to work as a "part time" cashier at Soriana (6-hours day, 6 days per week) because it is really set up for students and most of her co-workers attend local universities. She makes very little money, but it will give her enough pocket money to feel like a person, and to help buy her books.
So things are moving along! I will continue to keep everyone informed.
Here are the courses it will include:
http://www.itvalleoaxaca.edu.mx/reticulas/img/inf.html
I would love to hear feedback about this course of study from folks in similar fields -- what you think it might qualify her to do.
It will definitely be more challenging for her, and I can foresee the occasional need for a private tutor. I need to find one before she starts school. Fran does seem to be able to solve most of the mathematical problems she encounters by steadfast effort and ingenuity (she's found some great tutorials in Spanish on the web), but I imagine she will hit a wall or two and need some timely assistance.
She will probably continue to work as a "part time" cashier at Soriana (6-hours day, 6 days per week) because it is really set up for students and most of her co-workers attend local universities. She makes very little money, but it will give her enough pocket money to feel like a person, and to help buy her books.
So things are moving along! I will continue to keep everyone informed.
Monday, March 18, 2013
What Fran still needs
Fran will have just exactly enough to pay for two entrance exams and her tuition for one year for the Instituto Technologico de Oaxaca, of about 1200 pesos (we think). She is still in need of textbooks, clothes, a couple of warm blankets, and a back pack. Of course I would buy these items for her if I could, but on my Social Security benefits I can do little more than put a roof over her head, some soup on the table, and a few small things.
Her salary at Soriana amounts to about $50/week, enough for transportation and food. If you can donate a small amount for books and clothes, remember that you can use Paypal (and Paypal will let you use a credit card) to send the money to me at my email address: lcassady@gmail.com. Thank you!
Her salary at Soriana amounts to about $50/week, enough for transportation and food. If you can donate a small amount for books and clothes, remember that you can use Paypal (and Paypal will let you use a credit card) to send the money to me at my email address: lcassady@gmail.com. Thank you!
Learning her new job
For the last week and a half, Fran has been deep into learning her new job as a checker at the Mexican grocery chain, Soriana. We don't think she has earned a cent for her training period, but on Thursday (day after tomorrow) she will take her position at her checker booth and put into practice the thousands of pieces of information they have been cramming into her head all last week and part of this one!
There is some suspense. She will finish up her last computer study and exams tomorrow and has a meeting with the jefes (bosses) to receive the verdict about whether she has qualified herself for the responsible position of cashier. I will confirm as soon as I know!
Fran had to temporarily postpone her studies at the Oaxaca Learning Center (only for the week and a half of training) and change her study schedule to agree with her new part time job. We are hoping that her good luck in the job department will not greatly affect her chances of passing the exam. On Wednesday she will visit two universities to confirm the dates of the entrance examinations. Then she will sign up for both exams. She thinks she can arrange to take the exam at the University she DOESN'T want first, as a warm up.
To those reading this blog who make see these events as fairly routine, please know that they are anything but! Training at a huge grocery store with thousands of different products, codes for each one, and how to handle credit cards and other protocols is very challenging for Fran. There is no food store in the village where she was raised -- everyone there grows their own limited crops in dry, hard land.
Now that she is living with me, we talk almost every evening at the dinner table about where she came from, and the life she used to live. I don't see where she will find the time, but I have been urging her to write the story of her life in short vignettes, first in her native language of Cuicateco which is still her most fluent idiom. Then she can translate it into Spanish, in which she has become quite skilled (considering she only learned it 2 years ago), and then I will translate that into English.
I am so tempted to repeat what she has been telling me, but let me give you just a taste. There are no roads to her village, only a trail that goes off the main road about an hour away. Because the labor in the family field is so intensive, family members often walk the long way home after dark, especially when there is moonlight to light their way. They carry wood on their back for the dinner fire. The worst threat they face in the region where they live are poisonous snakes of several varieties, and one night Fran's mother heard whirring sounds overhead as she walked loaded down with wood -- snakes leaping through the branches. There is no medical care in the village, much less in the remote outback where most of the villagers tend their plots of land. Villagers have lost limbs and their very lives from snakebites. Fran told me that there is a kind of snake that you cannot kill by beheading it with a machete because the head will still come at you
One day, if Fran manages to find time between her "part time" (6 hours per day, 6 days per week) demanding job and her studies -- you may be reading about her life in her own words!
There is some suspense. She will finish up her last computer study and exams tomorrow and has a meeting with the jefes (bosses) to receive the verdict about whether she has qualified herself for the responsible position of cashier. I will confirm as soon as I know!
Fran had to temporarily postpone her studies at the Oaxaca Learning Center (only for the week and a half of training) and change her study schedule to agree with her new part time job. We are hoping that her good luck in the job department will not greatly affect her chances of passing the exam. On Wednesday she will visit two universities to confirm the dates of the entrance examinations. Then she will sign up for both exams. She thinks she can arrange to take the exam at the University she DOESN'T want first, as a warm up.
To those reading this blog who make see these events as fairly routine, please know that they are anything but! Training at a huge grocery store with thousands of different products, codes for each one, and how to handle credit cards and other protocols is very challenging for Fran. There is no food store in the village where she was raised -- everyone there grows their own limited crops in dry, hard land.
Now that she is living with me, we talk almost every evening at the dinner table about where she came from, and the life she used to live. I don't see where she will find the time, but I have been urging her to write the story of her life in short vignettes, first in her native language of Cuicateco which is still her most fluent idiom. Then she can translate it into Spanish, in which she has become quite skilled (considering she only learned it 2 years ago), and then I will translate that into English.
I am so tempted to repeat what she has been telling me, but let me give you just a taste. There are no roads to her village, only a trail that goes off the main road about an hour away. Because the labor in the family field is so intensive, family members often walk the long way home after dark, especially when there is moonlight to light their way. They carry wood on their back for the dinner fire. The worst threat they face in the region where they live are poisonous snakes of several varieties, and one night Fran's mother heard whirring sounds overhead as she walked loaded down with wood -- snakes leaping through the branches. There is no medical care in the village, much less in the remote outback where most of the villagers tend their plots of land. Villagers have lost limbs and their very lives from snakebites. Fran told me that there is a kind of snake that you cannot kill by beheading it with a machete because the head will still come at you
One day, if Fran manages to find time between her "part time" (6 hours per day, 6 days per week) demanding job and her studies -- you may be reading about her life in her own words!
New Computer
I believe it was the day after my last post (saying that Fran needed a computer) that one was donated by friends in Oaxaca! It is newer than my Mac, has almost twice the capacity, and a large screen, but I am NOT JEALOUS! I AM NOT!!! And neither is Marisol. No, we are not.
I had the hard disk reformatted and loaded with Office and Photoshop, got her a mouse and a sound cable, and she's in business. We are waiting for some additional memory so it won't be so slow (that's the only thing I'm not jealous about!)
We set her up in a corner of the living room next to the window, and she still uses the table in front of the window to study.
We have already given deep thanks to Cara (my fellow Quaker) and her husband Eugenio, but it isn't possible to give enough thanks for this valuable tool and window to the world. And I can't give enough gratitude to the universe that the person who received this gift -- Fran -- is so worthy of it.
I've been a bit under the weather, but soon I will be back to illustrating this blog with more pictures!
I had the hard disk reformatted and loaded with Office and Photoshop, got her a mouse and a sound cable, and she's in business. We are waiting for some additional memory so it won't be so slow (that's the only thing I'm not jealous about!)
We set her up in a corner of the living room next to the window, and she still uses the table in front of the window to study.
We have already given deep thanks to Cara (my fellow Quaker) and her husband Eugenio, but it isn't possible to give enough thanks for this valuable tool and window to the world. And I can't give enough gratitude to the universe that the person who received this gift -- Fran -- is so worthy of it.
I've been a bit under the weather, but soon I will be back to illustrating this blog with more pictures!
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
A few necessities
I am glad that we don't have to worry about coming up with rent for Fran this year, but there are a few things she will need. Hopefully these things, or the money for them can be donated. They include: a back pack, books and supplies, and for her future beyond my house....a computer!! She uses mine about 2 or 3 hours a day for math tutorials, research, and English, and once she starts college she will actually have assignments that involve online work.
Please scan your resourceful mind for any generous persons or businesses who might donate some of these items. Thank you!
Please scan your resourceful mind for any generous persons or businesses who might donate some of these items. Thank you!
Two giant steps forward! No steps back!
Fran has jumped over many hedges since we last spoke!
Hedge #1:
Last week she PASSED her first exams in Math, Chemistry and English at the Oaxaca Learning Center. There's an interesting story connected to her Chemistry exam, one that indicates the added burden she carries as one of the few female students at the Center. She is the only female in her class of 3 chemistry students, and when the exam was graded the first time around, she was the only one who passed. The two males accused her of cheating and demanded that the test be given again. A few days later, the three of them took the test for a second time -- and Fran saw this as an extra opportunity to practice test-taking, not as a problem. During the second test, Fran observed that both of the boys were peeking at their notes, but she didn't tattle. She knows that if they succeed like this in the Learning Center, when it comes time to take the real exam later on they will not be able to slide by.
Hedge #2:
She had the stitches removed yesterday from her dental surgery yesterday. No more wisdom teeth to bother her.
Hedge #3:
I told her she could live with me for another year, rent free. One less big worry.
Hedge #4:
She got a REAL JOB, part time (6 hours, 6 days a week ... I wish it was less, but she says she can do it) at the Soriana grocery store chain as a cashier!!! Of course she PASSED their math test, and today she waded through 3 or 4 interviews and an online questionnaire with 400 questions! Tomorrow she has to stand in line to get her social security number, have her picture taken, and she's ready to start!
That's enough hedges for now! Fran is excited and encouraged today. Right now she is preparing herself a meal before running off to class to share her good news with Sonya, the director of the Learning Center.
Here are a few photos of Fran taken during a visit to the ruins at Atzompa last week:
Hedge #1:
Last week she PASSED her first exams in Math, Chemistry and English at the Oaxaca Learning Center. There's an interesting story connected to her Chemistry exam, one that indicates the added burden she carries as one of the few female students at the Center. She is the only female in her class of 3 chemistry students, and when the exam was graded the first time around, she was the only one who passed. The two males accused her of cheating and demanded that the test be given again. A few days later, the three of them took the test for a second time -- and Fran saw this as an extra opportunity to practice test-taking, not as a problem. During the second test, Fran observed that both of the boys were peeking at their notes, but she didn't tattle. She knows that if they succeed like this in the Learning Center, when it comes time to take the real exam later on they will not be able to slide by.
Hedge #2:
She had the stitches removed yesterday from her dental surgery yesterday. No more wisdom teeth to bother her.
Hedge #3:
I told her she could live with me for another year, rent free. One less big worry.
Hedge #4:
She got a REAL JOB, part time (6 hours, 6 days a week ... I wish it was less, but she says she can do it) at the Soriana grocery store chain as a cashier!!! Of course she PASSED their math test, and today she waded through 3 or 4 interviews and an online questionnaire with 400 questions! Tomorrow she has to stand in line to get her social security number, have her picture taken, and she's ready to start!
That's enough hedges for now! Fran is excited and encouraged today. Right now she is preparing herself a meal before running off to class to share her good news with Sonya, the director of the Learning Center.
Here are a few photos of Fran taken during a visit to the ruins at Atzompa last week:
Friday, February 22, 2013
A brief pause in her studies....
Yesterday afternoon at 2:30, Fran was surrounded by 3 ex-military dentists who worked together to extract her two lower wisdom teeth -- FOR FREE! One of them has been her friend since last May, about 5 months before I met her. Both of us met Fran by chance.
How Fran met the Dentist: Fran was wandering around looking for a dentist's sign on the street because she had a pain in one of her teeth. She happened upon the establishment of dentist Luis on Calle Doblado and presented herself in his second-floor office. After talking to her for awhile, he was as impressed by her as I was, and decided to provide her dental care for very little money. Once they became friends, he also gave her samples of toothbrushes, mouthwash and toothpaste from his office. Later, when she needed this dental surgery he approached a friend of his who is a dental surgeon, another ex-military dentist, and they decided to perform the extractions free of cost.
She was in a lot of pain yesterday after the surgery (both wisdom teeth were lodged firmly in her jaw) but today she says she is pain free. Another day of rest and she should be up and about.
Here are photos I took this morning. She prepared the homemade icepacks a few days ago to have them ready!
How Fran met the Dentist: Fran was wandering around looking for a dentist's sign on the street because she had a pain in one of her teeth. She happened upon the establishment of dentist Luis on Calle Doblado and presented herself in his second-floor office. After talking to her for awhile, he was as impressed by her as I was, and decided to provide her dental care for very little money. Once they became friends, he also gave her samples of toothbrushes, mouthwash and toothpaste from his office. Later, when she needed this dental surgery he approached a friend of his who is a dental surgeon, another ex-military dentist, and they decided to perform the extractions free of cost.
She was in a lot of pain yesterday after the surgery (both wisdom teeth were lodged firmly in her jaw) but today she says she is pain free. Another day of rest and she should be up and about.
Here are photos I took this morning. She prepared the homemade icepacks a few days ago to have them ready!
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Coming along excellently!
Hello friends! We have been busy!
Fran has completed her study of algebra, is in the middle of chemistry, and is about to start mathematical functions and into calculus. Meanwhile she is methodically reading 20 - 24 pages per day of a history book that she checked out from the Oaxaca Learning Center. After her wisdom teeth are pulled (happening today!) for free by a kindly dentist who befriended her like I did, she will go join the city library and check out some books on biology, and more on history.
I let her use my computer for a few hours each evening when things quiet down and she can concentrate. She found high quality teaching videos on the internet in Spanish that really helped her as she studied algebra. Last night, we found a few good ones that addressed the subject of functions.
It is awesome to watch her, hour after hour, as she methodically goes through her study regime! I have to pinch myself sometimes that I have encountered such a remarkable person -- even more so when she tells me stories about her life in the remote village where she was raised!
Yesterday she told me she had never heard of the Beatles! I am thinking of getting her a scrap book to start collecting cultural items that she is exposed to and decides she likes. But when I think about it I don't think she would take the time -- she is too focused on her goal of passing the exam, and that is good!
She is now sleeping in my storeroom which we cleared out as much as possible for her, but spends her time in the living room. I now have 2 twenty-somethings living with me (Marisol is 27, Fran is 22) and it is working out beautifully. The two young women chat with each other in Spanish a bit every evening, but they are both busy with their own lives.
I told Fran yesterday that I really do want her to stay here with us until after she passes the exams and to stop looking for another place to live. We will cross the next bridge when we come to it! Meanwhile she is secure and able to focus on her studies.
Next week Fran is taking exams at the Oaxaca Learning Center in all of her subjects. They say that students who do not pass them will be dropped from the program. I am sure she will pass, and I am glad that there is some rigor to this program.
Fran will be paying her fees sometime in June and I will give you the exact date when it is posted on the school's website.
Here are a couple of recent photos!
Fran has completed her study of algebra, is in the middle of chemistry, and is about to start mathematical functions and into calculus. Meanwhile she is methodically reading 20 - 24 pages per day of a history book that she checked out from the Oaxaca Learning Center. After her wisdom teeth are pulled (happening today!) for free by a kindly dentist who befriended her like I did, she will go join the city library and check out some books on biology, and more on history.
I let her use my computer for a few hours each evening when things quiet down and she can concentrate. She found high quality teaching videos on the internet in Spanish that really helped her as she studied algebra. Last night, we found a few good ones that addressed the subject of functions.
It is awesome to watch her, hour after hour, as she methodically goes through her study regime! I have to pinch myself sometimes that I have encountered such a remarkable person -- even more so when she tells me stories about her life in the remote village where she was raised!
Yesterday she told me she had never heard of the Beatles! I am thinking of getting her a scrap book to start collecting cultural items that she is exposed to and decides she likes. But when I think about it I don't think she would take the time -- she is too focused on her goal of passing the exam, and that is good!
She is now sleeping in my storeroom which we cleared out as much as possible for her, but spends her time in the living room. I now have 2 twenty-somethings living with me (Marisol is 27, Fran is 22) and it is working out beautifully. The two young women chat with each other in Spanish a bit every evening, but they are both busy with their own lives.
I told Fran yesterday that I really do want her to stay here with us until after she passes the exams and to stop looking for another place to live. We will cross the next bridge when we come to it! Meanwhile she is secure and able to focus on her studies.
Next week Fran is taking exams at the Oaxaca Learning Center in all of her subjects. They say that students who do not pass them will be dropped from the program. I am sure she will pass, and I am glad that there is some rigor to this program.
Fran will be paying her fees sometime in June and I will give you the exact date when it is posted on the school's website.
Here are a couple of recent photos!
 |
| Fran with the needle-felted jesters and dolls I am making to sell. |
 |
| Fran's beautiful smile (she had just French-braided my hair) |
Thursday, February 14, 2013
A disappointment: fraud alert
Fran came back from her 2nd, unpaid day of training full of news and enthusiasm for her new job. She said that she was one of the 12 applicants still standing after an initial group of 50 applicants had dwindled. After she described the situation, including that they were not allowed to eat or go to the bathroom for the 8-hour training (only the fittest would survive this day, and indeed 32 people left) I asked her to write down the name of the company and immediately looked it up on the web; "Grupo CELCA". The first several entries were detailing why it is a fraudulent business that is victimizing the young and the poor and the desperate for work in Oaxaca.
Needless to say we were stunned. We read and reread the information, and the three of us including Marisol talked about the situation until Fran was able to accept her disappointment and move on. She did not want to believe it because the shiny promises they made to her were so attractive.
But how fortunate that we caught the situation now. Tomorrow the plan was for everyone to turn over personal information to the Grupo including addresses and phone numbers. Members of the Grupo said they were going to visit each house to see if it was suitable to hold certain goods, like boxes of cellphones....etc. You can see where this might have lead.
Fran is taking a shower now, to wash off the day. She will study a few hours tonight, and start job hunting an hour a day until she finds what she needs. I told her if she is feeling afraid about having no pocket money, I can provide a little and not to worry. Her focus is back on her studies, though I imagine it will take a day or two for the shock to wear off.
Needless to say we were stunned. We read and reread the information, and the three of us including Marisol talked about the situation until Fran was able to accept her disappointment and move on. She did not want to believe it because the shiny promises they made to her were so attractive.
But how fortunate that we caught the situation now. Tomorrow the plan was for everyone to turn over personal information to the Grupo including addresses and phone numbers. Members of the Grupo said they were going to visit each house to see if it was suitable to hold certain goods, like boxes of cellphones....etc. You can see where this might have lead.
Fran is taking a shower now, to wash off the day. She will study a few hours tonight, and start job hunting an hour a day until she finds what she needs. I told her if she is feeling afraid about having no pocket money, I can provide a little and not to worry. Her focus is back on her studies, though I imagine it will take a day or two for the shock to wear off.
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