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Peru, Nuevo Chimbote
Institución Educativa Virgen de las Gracias in Peru
Construction period: Aug 2018 – Jun 2019
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Facts

Type of facility

Three classrooms and one meeting room; completion of five classrooms and sanitary facilities; improvement of schoolyard

Students

230

Budget

€45,523

NGO partner

Associazione Don Bosco 3A

Education

Academic year

April to December

Literacy rate (15+ years old)

94.41 %

Attendance rate

Primary school – 99.32%
Lower secondary school – 98.13%
Upper secondary school – 87.97%

Project implementation

Nuevo Chimbote faces challenging economic circumstances, with many people lacking homes and resorting to makeshift shelters on the outskirts of the town. These conditions hinder children’s education as they lack stable electricity, running water, and modern conveniences.

To address this, the Acronis Cyber Foundation Program opened the Virgen de las Gracias School in 2019. The school provides free education, learning materials, uniforms, and meals to 75 children from the community, including disadvantaged Venezuelan families who migrated to Peru due to the crisis in their home country.

The school aims to create a safe and inspiring environment for children to study, develop skills, and interact with others. It offers extended hours, allowing children to participate in regular classes, after-school activities, and summer programs.

In 2021, the Acronis Cyber Foundation Program, in partnership with Climb Channel Solutions, constructed a computer classroom. This addition enables computer literacy and STEM classes, empowering students in the region.

In 2023, the school has beed expanded further. Additional classrooms, a library, a gym, a sports court, and a roofed central courtyard were built. This expansion allowed accommodate 25 more students and increased the capacity of Sunday activities from 230 to 300 children.

 

Partners

Gallery

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News from the project

The Virgen de las Gracias school celebrates completion…
In 2019, the Acronis Cyber Foundation Program embarked on a transformative journey to support the Virgen de las Gracias School. The initial…
The ongoing impact and future vision in Nuevo Chimbote,…
In 2023, Acronis returned to the community of Nuevo Chimbote, Peru, to further expand the school building. Additional…
Our school, our stories – Transforming lives through…
A school community is not just a building. It’s the various individuals and groups who are invested in the welfare and vitality of the school,…
2021 – 365 days of doing good
Making a positive difference in lives, that’s what that drives our every move.  We believe in equality for all – it’s as simple as that.…
Show all news

About the country

Country

Republic of Peru

Capital city

Lima

Population

33 million people

Currency

Sol (PEN)

Major languages

Spanish, Quechua, Aymara, other indigenous languages

Travel information

The coastal region has moderate temperatures, low precipitation, and high humidity, except for its warmer, wetter northern reaches.

The rainy season (summer) runs from December to March, and the dry season (winter) runs from May to September. In the central coastal area, where the school is located, the average temperature ranges from 17 °C to 23 °C (63 to 73 °F).

Sightseeing

Chan Chan

The Chimu Kingdom, with Chan Chan as its capital, reached its apogee in the 15th century, not long before falling to the Incas. The planning of this huge city, the largest in pre-Columbian America, reflects a strict political and social strategy, marked by the city’s division into nine ‘citadels’ or ‘palaces’ forming autonomous units.

Photo: ShutterStock

Titicaca lake

Lake Titicaca is the largest freshwater lake in South America and the highest of the world’s large lakes. Titicaca is one of less than twenty ancient lakes on earth, and is thought to be three million years old. Said to be the birthplace of the Incas, it’s home to numerous ruins.

Photo: Pixabay

Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu is an Incan citadel set high in the Andes Mountains, above the Urubamba River valley. Built in the 15th century and later abandoned, it’s renowned for its sophisticated dry-stone walls that fuse huge blocks without the use of mortar, intriguing buildings that play on astronomical alignments and panoramic views. Its exact former use remains a mystery.

Photo: Unsplash

Uros floating islands

At 3,812 m above sea level, in the Peruvian highlands is located the highest navigable lake in the world, Lake Titicaca, in Puno. Here you can find the Floating Islands of the Uros, a set of approximately 80 islands built of totora, an aquatic plant that grows on the surface of Lake Titicaca. The totora is woven and laid in layers to build the surface of each island. These islands are inhabited by the Uros, one of the oldest cultures on the continent, which dates back to pre-Inca times. The inhabitants of this floating community claim to be owners of the waters of Lake Titicaca.

Photo: Pixabay

Huacachina

Known as the “Oasis of America,” this small village has remained relatively unknown to non-backpackers, overshadowed perhaps by the soaring stone citadel, the bustling country’s capital, and the highest lake in the world.

Photo: Unsplash

Cathedral Baselica of Lima

The Basilica Cathedral of Lima, otherwise known as the Lima Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in the Plaza Mayor of downtown Lima, Peru. Construction began in 1535 and was completed in 1649. The building has been damaged by earthquakes three times. The current impressive building is from 1746 and has a museum inside.

Photo: ShutterStock

Cusco

Cusco, a city in the Peruvian Andes, was once capital of the Inca Empire, and is now known for its archaeological remains and Spanish colonial architecture.

Photo: Pixabay

Travel tips

Hotel recommendations

Lima: InkaHuset Lima Airport, Holiday Inn – Lima Airport

Nuevo Chimbote: Maresta

Huacachina: Hotel El Huacachinero

Cusco: Llipimpac Guesthouse, Taypikala Hotel Cusco, Casa Andina Premium Cusco, Palacio del Inka

Titicaca: Uros Titicaca Lodge

Places to eat

Nuevo Chimbote: restaurant of the Maresta Hotel, La Sazón De Paola, Portón Gaucho

Huacachina: La Rotiseria

Cusco: La Bodega 138

Best souvenirs from the country

Alpaca clothing, textiles, Chullo hat, backpack from traditional textiles, paintings, musical instruments, Retablos altar pieces, carved gourds, Pisco, coca candies, pink salt, friendship bracelets, Inca crosses, Pucara bulls, Ekeko (smoking god of prosperity), Andean dolls, Alpaca dolls, finger puppets, passport stamp from Titicaca lake.

Taxi

Rome2Rio service

Lima: Taxi Green

Nuevo Chimbote: Cruz Del Sur

Juliaca: Radio Taxi San Roman

Travel agencies

Five Continents Travel SAC

Interpreting services

CMV Interpretation and Translation Services 

Proposed one week tour

Day 1: Arrival in Lima. City tour

Day 2: Chan Chan. Transfer to Nuevo Chimbote

Day 3: School visit

Day 4: Transfer to Huacachina. Tour of the lagoon

Day 5: Transfer from Huacachina to Pisco. Flight from Pisco to Cusco. City tour

Day 6: Machu Picchu

Day 7: Flight from Cusco to Juliaca. Transfer to Uros Floating Islands at Titicaca Lake

Institución Educativa Virgen de las Gracias in the media

Acronis Cyber Foundation amplía su presencia en Perú abriendo su primer aula de computación en la región
Acronis Cyber Foundation expande a presença para o Peru, abrindo sua primeira sala de aula de informática na região
Escuela de la Fundación Matto Grosso beneficia a 240 niños en Nuevo Chimbote con educación gratuita
Fundación ACRONIS brinda educación gratuita a niños de Nuevo Chimbote
Fundación Internacional abre escuela para niños de escasos recursos en Nuevo Chimbote
FUNDACIÓN INTERNACIONAL “ACRONIS” CONSTRUYÓ COLEGIO EN NUEVO CHIMBOTE
Acronis Foundation открива ново училище в Нуево Чимботе, Перу
Linea de Accion por Tv Cosmos Chimbote
Antena Norte
Canal 81
MegaTV
Radio Stereo 100
Radio Studio 99
AmericaTV
Agenda. La revista
Diario de Chimbote
Fundación internacional abre una escuela para niños de escasos recursos en Nuevo Chimbote
Фонд Acronis Foundation открыл школу в Нуэво-Чимботе, Перу

Read what community says about the project

During the pandemic, the education of our children was forced to rely on technological tools. Thanks to the contribution of computers and photocopiers, we were able to conduct classes virtually, while also allowing the printing of modules that served as teaching materials in lieu of traditional books. Currently, we continue to use these tools in the administrative aspects of the school, including making copies, handling books, managing documents, and more. Additionally, they play a crucial role in researching children’s work, thereby facilitating their activities.
Haydee Maricela Caiguaraico Nunja
Secretary and education assistant
The construction of the new classrooms has allowed us to receive more children, which is very important to help those without other opportunities to study. I, in particular, take care of the students who cannot return home after school hours because their parents are absent for work reasons or because their families are very problematic. Some children and teenagers stay at school until dinner time, and while they are here, we help them with their homework, organize play and learning activities, teach them personal care and hygiene, and wash their school uniforms and the clothes they wear at school. We are almost like a family to them, and in this way, we prevent them from being unprotected and on the street after school.
Milagros Fernanda Silva Espinoza
Extended day program supervisor
The educational institution Virgen de las Gracias is a school that takes in the poorest, neediest, and often youngest children who would otherwise be unable to study. That is why this school is fundamental in providing many children with a quality education and educators who accompany them in their human, spiritual, and social formation. This ensures that, tomorrow, they can have a dignified future and break the cycle of poverty in which they and their families live. Only education can provide an alternative to poverty and suffering. I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to all donors: they have allowed us to take in more children and offer them hope for the future. Creating the proper infrastructure for our children would only be possible with your help.
Samuele Fattini
Represntative of Don Bosco 3A Association
Working in this school is unique because it is not just a job; it is about helping the neediest children, teaching them, building a family with them, getting to know their stories, and helping them to understand and manage their emotions. This school is a beacon of hope for so many families, and it is possible to carry out this work thanks to the professionalism of all our collaborators and the help of our benefactors, who, even without knowing us, provide us with the possibility of having a first-class infrastructure at the service of the poorest. To every one of them, my deepest thanks and prayers.
Haydee Maricela Caiguaraico Nunja
Secretary and education assistant
My name is Israel Jesus Vilchez Flores. I am 10 years old and will be studying in the 5th grade at the Virgen de las Gracias school this year. I live with my four siblings, two older and two younger, and my mother and her new partner. The man who is my mother’s partner does not want my mother to spend money on us because we are not his children. That’s why he didn’t want us to go to school. He hadn’t bought us notebooks or uniforms, and I thought I wouldn’t be able to go to school like my friends. When my mum talked to the school and told me that I would study there and that they would give me the notebooks, the colors, and the uniform, I was thrilled! I am excited to study. I have good teachers and good friends at school, and I would like to be an engineer when I grow up.
Israel Jesus Vilchez Flores
Student
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