Algodon

COTN was first introduced to the village of Algodon in the Dominican Republic (DR) in the summer of 1997. Algodon is an early 1900s sugar-cane plantation village made up of mainly Haitian-Dominican families. These families came from Haiti to the DR generations ago to find work. A majority of the Haitians who came across the border did not have their birth certificates; because of this, many were denied access to public education. This cycle repeated itself for years and as a result, there are many generations of illiterate Haitian families living in poverty in the Dominican Republic. COTN encountered Malou Faublas (now part of the COTN–DR Staff). She was volunteering in this poverty-stricken, hopeless village. She taught 37 primary-aged students in a mud hut with broken desks (of which there were only 20). The mud hut was falling down with cracks in the walls and a roof that allowed rain in. There were no teaching materials available. One other teacher (provided by the government education system) was working with 30 intermediate-aged students. These 67 children represented less than half of the school-aged children in the village.

Later, in 1997, COTN began work in Algodon, focusing on education and nutrition. With permission from the plantation owner, we established a feeding center and in 1998 completed a school building. Only six years later, Algodon had its first child to ever graduate from that village. Our COTN school now reaches children from preschool to grade 8. A daily feeding center accompanies our school, so that the children receive proper nutrition to further enhance their life and learning capabilities. Currently, we have close to 200 children in Algodon who receive daily education and nutrition. Because of the high unemployment rate and lack of vision for the future, it has been a challenge to get and keep these children in school. Through incentive programs, committed staff, and now the graduation of two young people in this village, the enrollment of the school has greatly increased. Parents now have hope for the future of their children. The majority of the parents in this village (estimated at over 90%) cannot read or write. The continual growth of COTN programs coupled with the success of our children will have a tremendous impact on the socio-economic growth of the entire people and villages of the Dominican Republic.