EORM Paraje Parracantacaj Bathroom Project – Guatemala

Location

Parracantacaj, San Andrés Xecul, Totonicapán, Guatemala

Community Description
Parracantacaj is a small rural community located just outside the center of the municipality of San Andrés Xecul, Totonicapan, 189 kilometers from Guatemala City. All community members speak K’iche, the Mayan language of the region, and/or Spanish.

Situated in the middle of cornfields, the school Escuela Oficial Rural Mixta (EORM) paraje Parracantacaj serves 80 children from kindergarten to sixth grade. The school’s four female teachers are extremely dedicated and the school received healthy certification in 2010. They are easily the most motivated school in the municipality.

The school’s teachers designed, funded, and constructed a five-faucet hand washing system in 2010. They have a 2,000 L water tank and the community has water all the time. There are four classrooms, one kitchen with a clean-burning stove, three latrines, and a small paved patio for the kids to play during recess.

Each teacher gives at least two health lessons a week and each classroom has a health corner equipped with the utensils needed to practice healthy habits. To identify malnourished and at-risk children, the director coordinates with the health center to conduct biannual height and weight measurements. The school also has an up-to-date disaster management plan and carries out evacuation drills a few times every year.

The current latrines were built four years ago and have reached capacity. Additionally, they have never had doors to protect the privacy of the students and teachers.

Project Description
This project is to build a new bathroom with two flush toilets and to connect the school to a privately owned drainage system.

The school will properly close the existing latrines with a cement top, and build the new bathrooms around and on top of the old space. Two new flush toilets and seats will be installed and connected directly to a local drainage system located 100 meters from the school. The current water tank will be moved to sit on top of the bathrooms, ensuring water pressure at all times. Cement floors, walls, and ceilings enforced with rebar will be built around the toilets, and metal, locking doors will be installed to ensure privacy.

Three parents who are skilled masons have designed and will carry out the project without cost. The unskilled labor during construction will be provided free of cost by other parents. The municipal office has promised to pay for the tubing to connect the school to the drainage pipe. The parents and teachers have raised the money for the rest of the materials, minus the doors.

Water Charity funds will be used to pay the neighbors for the connection to the drainage system and pay for doors and locks.

Project Impact
This project will benefit the 80+ students and 4 teachers that use the school, as well as the 40 families in the community that often use the space for events and community meetings.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Megan Peyton and Elana Leonard

Comments
This project will provide for the sanitation and hygiene needs of the school community through the creation of a clean, private, and functional space.

Dollar Amount of Project
$555.00

Donations Collected to Date
$555.00

Dollar Amount Needed
$0.00 – This project has been fully funded, through the generosity of Michael and Carla Boyle, of Nelsonville, OH, USA.

This project has been concluded.