Florencia Valentina Agustin Vicente

We first met Valentina at a gathering run by Colectivo Vida Digna with her four sisters and two other young women. She was very shy, but also very playful when she warmed up to us. The best way to tell you about Valentina is in the words of Anna from Colectivo Vida Digna:

It is with great sentiment that I recommend Florencia Valentina Agustin Vicente for a One New Education Scholarship. Valentina is an extremely bright child with a special sparkle in her eye, just shy of turning 11 years old. Valentina is Maya Mam from San Juan Ostuncalco, a town in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. She is one of 11 brothers and sisters and the fourth youngest in the family. The family has gone through quite some hardship over the years, particularly due to economic constraints. Her mother, Doña Nicolasa, is very loving and affectionate, although she has severe and debilitating lower back problems. Her father, Don Mario, is a hard-working dedicated father and agricultural worker. Due to the distance of the house to the nearest public school, the cost of public education (all throughout Guatemala), and a lack of disposable income, Valentina´s parents had not been able to secure education for their children. However, thanks to her eldest sister, Angelica, this year Valentina and 4 other siblings are matriculated in primary school.

Together with her 8-year old brother, Valentina will start first grade this year. Her sister, Alicia, 13, will also start first grade in an accelerated learning program, along with siblings, Nedy, 15 and Paola, 17 who are in third and fifth grade. Valentina will go to the public school ¨Escuela José Ramón Ovando¨. A scholarship of $400.00 for Valentina for the 2018 school year covers uniform and school clothes, shoes, books, school supplies, contributions for celebrations at school and travel to her home in pick-up truck during the rainy season.

One thing that makes Valentina so special is her love for reading. Despite never having had the opportunity to study, Valentina at a young age would leaf through her older brother Armando´s books and pretend to read, making up stories to the pictures for her younger siblings. Finally one day her older brother decided to teach her how to read and since then Valentina reads every book she can get her hand on. I imagine her being a great storyteller and author herself one day.

Although all of Valentina´s siblings have a demonstrated thirst for knowledge and are actively seeking to change the story for their family, there is a special reason we recommend Valentina. Valentina´s three older sisters work as maids. These jobs besides being degrading, exposing young women to ill-treatment and being low paying, also close doors to other opportunities in life, particularly daily schooling. We know that if Valentina is not able to maintain her studies, in a few short years, when she is 12 or 13 she will go to work, and much like her sister Alicia, will no longer qualify nor have the time to attend regular school classes. Granted a One New Education scholarship Valentina will start a new motion in her family for her younger siblings, working against the odds and in the face of hardship, putting education first.

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Here is Valentina’s letter to us for her application, along with a translation. She got a little help on the computer at the Vida Digna office, but she had to give the letter a little of her own style!

Translation: Hello, my name is Florencia Valentina, but I like you to call me Valentina more. I am 10 years old and I will turn 11 on February 15. I have younger and older brothers and sisters, we are 11 in all, the oldest is 25 and her name is Angelica. The youngest is named Esvin and he is 2. Angelica helped me register for school in January and I am going to study from 1 PM until I leave at 5:30 in the afternoon in Escuela Jose Ramon Ovando. This year I will bein first grade and I am really happy because I am going to learn. My mother and father will bring me to school and my sister Paola or my sister Angelica will bring me home because the school is 25 minutes walking from my house.

What I like the most is to read stories, like the ones my grandfather tells me. My brother Armando taught me to read. When we go to husk corn, my grandfather tells me how it used to be and how he grew up. I help my mother with cooking, cleaning in the house, washing my little siblings’ clothes and sometimes I grind the corn. I love to play with my brothers and sisters. I couldn’t study before this because my mother hurt her back and there was no money.

Thank you very much and may God bless you.

We are so happy to be able to help Valentina move forward and fulfill her love of reading and learning, and we can’t wait to travel her path with her and see where she goes!

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December

Valentina has graduated from primary school! She has been the valedictorian of her class for a whopping SIX years in a row, and was honored with being the abandadera, carrying the flag at her graduation. We were sad not to be there, but we got some wonderful photos from our contacts. Valentina is so grown up and looks so proud of herself. As she should be! What an incredible young woman. We can’t wait to see where high school takes her!

In her year-end letter to us, it is so clear that Valentina is maturing a lot. She talks of dealing with classmates teasing her and getting through those tough times. She’s a little scared about high school, where there will be more competition and older students that might be problems. She’s a thoughtful young woman, who feels things deeply, and we hope that high school doesn’t prove too challenging in the interpersonal realm. We know she’ll do great with her classwork!

Here is a translation of her year-end/end of primary school letter to us:

San Juan Ostuncalco, 29 November, 2023

Cordial greetings, hoping that you are well alongside your loved ones. In this letter, I will send you the answers to your questions.

1. What thing are you most proud of that you have accomplished in your life outside of school?

I am proud of having removed myself from the bad influence of those who said they were my friends, and of having been able to deal with their teasing and bad behavior that they had towards me and the people around me. I also consider something for which I must be proud, that of not having become angry and of not having held a grudge for those people who were better than I was in certain aspects and instead of having resentment or jealousy for those people, I felt happiness and joy.

2. What are you most proud of having accomplished during this school year?

This isn’t something for which I feel really proud, but I am happy for having helped many of my classmates, and also to have helped several girls in third and fourth grade. Something that yes I am proud of is having reached the point of giving a class without the supervision of my teacher. I am happy to have been with many people and have been able to provide much help to many kids. I am proud of arriving in sixth grade having been abandadera the years before and having been able to do so much homework, although there were occasions when I didn’t submit the work on time, but I managed to deal with that.

3. Are you excited or nervous to enter secondary school? Why or why not?

I am excited and nervous, because I don’t know what this new stage of my life will be like. I know that in the beginning it will be a little difficult but I hope to become accustomed and adapt to the school. I hope to be able to learn and know. I am a little scared to have problems with other people and not have time to be able to turn in my work. I’m also a little scared that I won’t be able to get along with some classmates and also to be teased by them. I want to get better at certain things and I hope to accomplish this in the coming year.

4. How do you think that secondary school will be different or the same as primary school?

It will obviously be different. The difficulty will increase and they have told me that there is more competition regarding becoming abandadera. But I hope that it will not be as hard as they have said, but you never know. So I just wait for my destiny and I hope not to make large errors and mistakes and that it doesn’t affect my self-esteem and my academic performance.

My physical performance has lessened, but I hope not to have problems with that and to be able to give my best. I hope not to have any rivalries with any classmates, although that would be normal; it occurs in the majority of establishments, and if there does happen to be a rivalry, I hope I can deal with it.

Thanks for reading this, and thanks for the clothing you have given me. I don’t know how to thank you. I hope that God rewards you.

Florencia Valentina Agustin Vicente

October 2023

Valentina continues to be the top in her class, and acting as a second teacher to all her classmates. Her average at the semester was 91%, and it sounds like she is doing well, although occasionally struggling with the same things a lot of students struggle with in these years. Her recent letter to us alluded to some troubles with some friends, and we hope we can ask her about it next time we talk. It’s hard being older than everyone in your class, but she’s doing really well with it, and we couldn’t be prouder.

16 July, 2023

San Juan Ostuncalco

From: Florencia Valentina Agustin Vicente

To:  Christa

A warm greeting, hoping that you are well at the side of your family and your loved ones. Here are my responses to your questions.

1. What have you done during the past 6 months of your school year?

I have helped my teacher with my classmates. And I have learned new things that are not that difficult from when I first learned them. I learned that some friends of years can exchange you for someone they just met and leave you when you most need them, and that it’s OK. We know those around us and we know their true intentions.

2. What have you learned from the topics taught by your teacher during this time?

I have learned to add, subtract, multiply and divide decimals. It’s been a little hard for me to divide decimals, but nothing that caused me any problems. I’ve also learned about the continents and the origins of their names. As well as the different types of vertebrate and invertebrate animals.

3. What are you hoping to learn for the second half of the school year?

I feel like I’ve learned but I still have a lot to learn. I want to learn many things, in school and in life. I feel like I learn the subjects faster when I explain them to my classmates.

DECEMBER 2022

Valentina has finished her school year, and done very well, as usual. Despite suffering with a very painful cyst in her foot all through the school year, she managed to garner an 89% average. She had surgery just after school was finished, and says she is recovering well. Her final letter to us is translated below. She seems to be stretching herself and growing with each year, and we are so happy for her.

Translation

San Juan Ostuncalco 15 November 2022

To Whom It May Concern: I greet you cordially, hoping that this finds you well, alongside your loved ones.

Answers to the questions you asked me to do.

What was the most interesting thing you learned this year?

In math, I learned the measurements of length and of weight. I also learned the rule of thirds and percentages. I also learned how to work with computers better. I liked being together with my classmates and my family.

What is something difficult that you are proud of having done this year?

Participate in the elections of Jose Ramon Ovando because I am not accustomed to participate in activities like that. It was hard to control my nerves because I am not used to speaking in public. Another thing that was difficult for me was to cope with the pain of my cyst and I didn’t want that to affect my studies, but with the help of medications the pain was lessened and I could do activities in the school and at home.

Was there something unexpected that you learned? Not necessarily at school but also in life?

With the unexpected arrival of a little dog that wasn’t loved, but with time was accepted and loved I learned that if we make mistakes we can’t go back in time and avoid them, but we can accept them and live with them.

What are you looking forward to most about next school year?

I hope to be able to learn and know more, not only places and people, but I hope to know myself better, to resolve my problems and be able to help others. I hope to be better in my thoughts and emotions and in the way I resolve problems.

OCTOBER 2022

Once again, Valentina is on the honor roll! She was also the valedictorian of her class, and the abanderada (flag bearer) in the annual independence day parade. She has definitely regained her interest in school and gotten back to her old enthusiasm for studying and achieving. It’s clear she’s enjoying school this year, and we are so happy for her.

During the vacation, we will be helping pay for a surgery on her foot to remove a benign tumor/cyst that is causing her a lot of pain. She hasn’t wanted to abandon her studies, so she is waiting until vacation, while doing naturopathic remedies to help in the meantime.

JANUARY 2022

Despite a lot of challenges, Valentina did really well in 4th grade. On her final grade card, her lowest grade was an 87, with all the rest in the 90s. We are so proud of her, and our contact Anna says she is definitely getting back to her interest in studying and school, even if the subject matter doesn’t always interest her, or if she is having personal issues. Remember that she is a lot older than her classmates, and we know that is not easy. Her letter to us about her last year explains some of her angst, but also shows that she is moving ahead.

Thursday, January 06, 2022

For Christa, I hope you and your loved ones are well and that you had a good 2021.

How was the school year different from the previous year? What were the differences?
Well, this year at the beginning it was a bit complicated because of the masks and over time I got used to it. With the homework it was a bit easier, because if I had doubts I could ask the teacher and she could explain to me without we having to wait a long time. There were many differences because it was not like other years, we had more freedom. This year we couldn’t get close to the others, we couldn’t go out to the patio, we couldn’t take off our mask, when we got to school we couldn’t breathe well through the mask, since we couldn’t take off the mask we had to suffer. Over time we got used to it.

What are the things you learned that fascinated you? What did you learn that was NOT very interesting? Explain why you liked and disliked the topics.
This year the tasks did not catch my attention, they were not as interesting as I expected. Something that caught my attention was multiplication with the fingers, my teacher taught us. It was hard for me to understand how it worked but I did it. Most of the classes were somewhat boring, but the last 3 months were less boring because most of my friends had been with another teacher but the teacher left (I think to another school) so my friends moved with my teacher. In the evaluations I did not do so well but not bad either. My points were earned by doing all the homework that the teacher gave us.

 Can you think of a day in 2021 that was wonderful? Describe how it was. Why was it wonderful? What happened that day?
I don’t remember a “wonderful” day, this year it didn’t go so well for me, some days the mornings went well but in the afternoons they didn’t, others were bad mornings, good afternoons, others the whole day went bad. As I told you before, 2021 did not go well for me. I hope 2022 goes well for me. I only remember that one day the teacher told us that we were going to make a kite that afternoon the whole class spent making kites.

What are you most proud of your achievements for the year?
I think this year I was able to help my classmates more than before, they even tell me that I am the second teacher. I also managed to get my peers to respect me as the oldest. If the teacher left, they left me in charge. I also managed to get over myself. This is what makes me proud of 2021.

These were some of the things that happened to me this 2021 I can’t write more because I don’t remember. I hope you all liked it. Have a good 2022 and God take care of you and fill your life with blessings.

SEPTEMBER, 2021

Valentina is back in school, and our contact Anna said that she has regained interest in studying after struggling a bit at the beginning of the year. We’re so glad to hear that and hope that she continues to stay interested. It is hard when you are so much older than the other students in your grade, but we have no doubt she can persevere and overcome her challenges to study what she’d like and create a dream for herself. We are still hoping she’ll think of something that she loves that we can help her learn, some extracurricular activity. She has said she wants to learn to draw better, but doesn’t want to take an extra class. So we’ll keep trying, because we believe in her!

FEBRUARY 2021

Valentina is looking forward to going back to school in person. It’s been a hard year for her, partly because of the pandemic and studying online, but also because she is growing up and experiencing all the things that girls hitting puberty experience. It is also challenging because she’s so much older than her classmates. But she is persevering! We’ve included a translation of her year-end letter to us, responding to some questions we asked her.

Date: 14 February, 2021
Greeting: Hello, and a very good day to you. I hope you are well.

Dear Christa, here are my responses to your questions.

1. What made you the happiest of all the things you accomplished this school year? What made me happiest this past year in 2020 is that I had a lot of friends, and I could be with my family. Although in 2020 I didn’t learn much in school.

2. What differences did you see between studying online and in the classroom? Well, when I was in class, I learned a lot because if I didn’t understand something, I could ask the teacher. But when I studied online, it was difficult for me because there were things I didn’t understand. The teacher explained things to me sometimes but it was hard to understand. For me it is difficult and complicated to study online.

3. Would you like to take an online class? Tell us what you would like to learn. Yes, I’d like to do that, but as I said before, for me it is difficult and complicated, so now I am not interested in that, and if I get put into an online class it may be difficult for me to deal with homework from the school.

4. If there was something about which you’d like to learn, like a skill, what would you like to learn to do? It could be a talent, an art, etc. What would it be? Tell us why you’d like to learn to do that thing. I’d like to draw a lot better. I like to express myself through drawings: my sadness, my happiness and my fears. I like to express myself through my drawings because for me drawings are art.

5. What are you most hopeful for in the coming year? In 2021 I hope to learn many things. I hope to be able to help my friends, and I hope to be able to get good grades.

​We hope that 2021 year is a good one and that she learns a lot this year, too. It’s hard to study online, even with the best computers and teachers who are used to that style of education. We understand that a lot of students in other countries are losing interest, and we hope that we can keep Valentina excited about school!

NOVEMBER 2020

Valentina has been studying at home, which is a challenge. Since she doesn’t have a computer at home (or Internet), the folks from Colectivo Vida Digna brought over some books and study supplies for her and her siblings. They have been working hard, despite the difficulties. Luckily, they were spared the worst of the hurricanes and were able to continue pretty much uninterrupted. She’s growing up into a beautiful young woman, and she still has that sparkle in her eye that we saw when we first met her.

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DECEMBER 2019

Valentina ended her second grade year with her usual slate of awards and honors. She won second place in a school-wide chess tournament, received high honors for her grades, and is generally in love with school (which we love!). She will be entering third grade and turning 13 in February. Although she is a little older than a third grader in the United States, this is not holding her back at all. She is an amazing student, loves studying, and writes us terrific letters. We have no doubt whatsoever that she will continue to do really well in school. Our friends at Colectivo Vida Digna do so much to help Valentina and other young women succeed in school and in life, so we are really happy to know that she has that support.

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Valentina wrote two year-end letters, one a self-evaluation and the other answering questions we sent her. We have attached both her versions and the translations, since we love to show you her efforts at making a beautiful-looking letter as well as one that says something important.

TRANSLATIONS

San Juan Ostuncalco, 27 December, 2019

A very good day to you and thank you for the opportunity that you have given me. I hope that you are all well, with no family problems. Regarding your questions, here are my answers.

1. Tell us something that you learned that you didn’t know before. How did this make you feel?

Individual rights. People have rights from birth. Nationality, sex, ethnicity, religion and economic situation don’t matter. For that reason they say these are universal.

Human rights are freedoms that when they are respected allow human beings to have a healthy and happy life.

This made me feel that when I grow up and respect them I could have a happy and healthy life.

2. How have you changed, and why?

I have changed a lot. Now I understand more things that I didn’t before and I have changed in the way I think. When I started school I was happy because I was going to learn new things. Now I better understand the subjects that I didn’t before. For example, math, English, and Mam.

3. What have you done that you are proud of?

I was a flag carrier, I finished second grade, I lived together with my family, I received good grades. All of those are things that make me feel proud of myself and I thank god for that.

4. What are three goals for the coming year?

My three goals that I want to achieve are to be a bandadera (flag carrier), pass third grade, and to be a better person every day.

5. What are you going to do during your vacation time?

Help my mother around the house, teach my little sister Edith to walk, learn to ride a bicycle and read new books.

I hope you have a happy new year and may god bless you.

Self-evaluation
How did this year go?

This year was good, but there were a few difficulties and problems at home, but in school things went really well.

What have been the difficulties that you had this year and that you overcame?

My difficulty this year was that in the middle of the year I got a new teacher because they changed directors and our teacher taught another class. Another difficulty was that it was hard to take care of my sister Astrid.

What did you accomplish this year?

I got good grades.
I was a bandadera.
I was able to attend school every day of the year.
I was able to help my classmates with their homework.
I passed my grade.

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SEPTEMBER 2019

Valentina has been awarded valedictorian of her second grade class! She works so hard, and it obviously pays off. She’s smart and dedicated to her studies, and we couldn’t be prouder of her. She gets to share the spotlight with three of her siblings, who were also honored as valedictorians in their respective grades. This is obviously a very special family.

FEBRUARY 2019

We got to visit with Valentina during our trip to Guatemala with students from the Flagstaff Arts and Leadership Academy. It was great to see her! She’s just as sweet as ever, and she’s super excited about having started second grade. She and her sister Alicia participated in some art workshops with our students, and we also met with them both and gave them some presents.

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SEPTEMBER 2018

We received some wonderful news recently from our contact in Guatemala. Anna tells us that Valentina was the valedictorian for first grade in the entire town! This is always a high honor, but it is especially so for Valentina, who didn’t start first grade until she was 11, and for whom Spanish is her second language. She marched in the annual Independence Day parade as a bandadera (flag bearer), and Anna sent us some wonderful pictures.

We couldn’t be more delighted and proud of her accomplishments. Congratulations, Valentina! Bien hecho!

MAY 2018

Apparently, Valentina loves school! Anna says she is doing really well and is a “perfeccionista,” wanting to get everything just right. Anna says, “The truth is we could not be happier with Valentina and her enthusiasm for her studies. She was a little nervous at the start but everything is turning out really well, she’s quite the perfectionist!” Anna sent us a wonderful video of an interview that Valentina’s teacher did with her. She talks about how much she likes school and that she wants to be a teacher to help children learn. We hope you enjoy it!

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