Several years ago, our club was introduced to an international project called RACHEL, a Rotary Global Grant initiative that provides technology to improve education in remote areas, particularly in places with limited or no internet access.
RACHEL, which stands for “Remote Area Community Hotspot for Education and Learning,” uses a portable server loaded with offline educational content like textbooks, Wikipedia, and videos. The project also includes providing laptops, teacher training, and other resources to create a sustainable learning environment.
Our International Committee has been funding RACHEL projects for years now. Gary Pellett initiated our club’s participation with RACHEL 1 & 2 in Guatemala, Randy Barcalow and David Bacon championed project upgrades on RACHEL 3 & 4.
Most recently, RACHEL 4 adds more training, more equipment and more support to the project. The Rotary Club of Gig Harbor invested $7,500 for this round along with participation from several other clubs and districts and Rotary World Fund Match for a total financial investment of $153,000 for this round of funding.
The core of the project is the RACHEL system, a “plug-and-play” server that creates a local network of educational content without needing an internet connection. Each RACHEL device is pre-loaded with a variety of digital resources including Guatemalan textbooks, reading and reference books, Wikipedia, educational videos and games, and teacher-created modules.
The project also provides schools with complementary equipment, such as Chromebook laptops, headsets, TVs, and soundbars. The project often uses a Self-Organized Learning Environment (SOLE) approach, where students use the RACHEL content to find answers to their teachers’ questions.
The overall goal is to enhance basic education and literacy in rural communities by making digital learning resources accessible to both students and teachers.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, schools in and around Barillas, Guatemala, where our club had previously installed RACHEL systems were effectively closed for three years. Once schools were back up and running, RACHEL 3 project provided 500 new Chromebooks, 12 RACHEL servers, 12 UPS systems, and money for parts and repairs to existing Chromebooks already on site. RACHEL 4 provided funding for more teacher training administrative coordination and technical support.
Where does the money come from?
Well, here’s the exciting part of how international projects are funded. The initial investments come from clubs including ours in Districts 5020 and 6380, the second tier comes from District Designated Funds, and the third tier comes from the Rotary World Fund Match program.
And we have partners!
Mundo Posible is the system developer and trainer, the Hands for Peacemaking Foundation delivers and monitors the equipment, the Guatemalan Ministry of Education tracks educational results and coordinates with local teachers, and the Rotary Club of Barillas develops and maintains relationships with the schools installing and using the RACHEL systems.
What about impact?
This is really exciting! More than 10,000 students in more than 50 schools in Guatemala, quickly expanding toward 100 schools are now benefiting from using RACHEL system. In these schools 60% of the teachers are using RACHEL in their classrooms, 80% of the students are overcoming their fear of technology, and 65% are significantly improving reading comprehension. And the project is sustainable because the Guatemalan government provides $2.50 per student annually for system maintenance. Parent-Teacher organizations and school directors will oversee the continued use of the RACHEL systems after the grant upgrades are completed. And a local project coordinator will provide ongoing support and training.
How’s that for making a difference?
