We believe the best way to end poverty is by ensuring everyone has access to quality education. That’s why buildOn partners with rural communities in economically developing countries to empower local residents to build schools, re-enroll children, and educate adult learners.

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Education Is a Vital Human Right

We believe the best way to end poverty is by ensuring everyone has access to quality education. That’s why buildOn partners with rural communities in economically developing countries to empower local residents to build schools, re-enroll children, and educate adult learners.

Global Impact

3,191

Schools built in low-income countries

410,686

Children and adults attend buildOn schools

6.1million

Volunteer work days contributed by community members

Where We Build

We build schools in eight of the economically poorest countries on the planet, providing access to education to hundreds of thousands of children, parents, and grandparents.

Guatemala

The UN Human Development Index ranks Guatemala as the third poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, and it ranks in the bottom 10th percentile of all countries for income inequality.

The Facts

149

Schools built

16,390

Students enrolled in school

Many women in the indigenous communities where buildOn works never learned to write their own names, but by signing the buildOn Covenant with a thumbprint they ensure the next generation will be educated.
Many women in the indigenous communities where buildOn works never learned to write their own names, but by signing the buildOn Covenant with a thumbprint they ensure the next generation will be educated.
Since 2019, we’ve partnered with Guatemalan communities to provide schools (and smiles) to thousands of young students.
Since 2019, we’ve partnered with Guatemalan communities to provide schools (and smiles) to thousands of young students.
Volunteers from buildOn’s U.S. Service Learning programs, like these students from the South Bronx, have been instrumental in helping to construct the first buildOn schools in Guatemala.
Volunteers from buildOn’s U.S. Service Learning programs, like these students from the South Bronx, have been instrumental in helping to construct the first buildOn schools in Guatemala.
Everyone has a chance to serve and contribute on a buildOn school construction site in Guatemala, including women who are often denied such opportunities.
Everyone has a chance to serve and contribute on a buildOn school construction site in Guatemala, including women who are often denied such opportunities.
buildOn serves the following regions of Guatemala: Huehuetenango, Quiche, San Marcos, Baja Verapaz, and Alta Verapaz.
buildOn serves the following regions of Guatemala: Huehuetenango, Quiche, San Marcos, Baja Verapaz, and Alta Verapaz.
Heynor, a student in Guatemala, stands in front of the construction site of his new buildOn school.

I feel very happy to go to a new school in a different place to go to classes, because I dream of being a teacher and, one day, teaching in this beautiful new school to help other kids like me have a better education.

Heynor / Student

Learn More About Guatemala Programs

Erin Hartsough
Vice President of Community and Corporate Partnerships
Erin.Hartsough@buildon.org

Our Global Movement

Education is a vital human right, yet most of the world’s people living in extreme poverty lack basic education. We’re committed to changing that. In the world’s economically poorest countries, buildOn empowers local residents to take the lead in bringing education and opportunity to their communities. 

buildOn works in eight different countries across four continents to build schools with villages that lack adequate classrooms. Oftentimes, students have been learning in huts or under trees in all weather conditions, or they’ve been forced to walk several miles every day to the nearest school. Many have never set foot in a classroom.

Before breaking ground on their school, every community member signs the buildOn Covenant—a solemn promise between buildOn and the village outlining our contribution to the project. We contribute engineering, materials, and skilled labor. Each village provides land, local materials, and the weeks of labor it takes to build the school. Every village also promises to send girls and boys to school in equal numbers.

Once a school is complete, buildOn staff closely monitor and evaluate its success. Communities that continue to honor their Covenant—through a proven commitment to cooperation, education, and gender equality—are considered for second schools.

Our sustainable approach ensures that schools are built with a community, not for a community—because the people we work with are true partners, not recipients of aid. 

Our Global Programs Need Your Help

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Build a school with us on Trek!












A buildOn Trek is an adventure in service.

The Key Pillars of our Methodology

Before breaking ground on their school, every community member signs the buildOn Covenant—a solemn promise between buildOn and the village outlining our contributions to the project. We contribute engineering, materials, and skilled labor. Each village provides land, local materials, and the weeks of labor it takes to build the school. This approach ensures that schools are built with a community, not for a community.

Our Commitment

Before breaking ground on their school, every community member signs the buildOn Covenant—a solemn promise between buildOn and the village outlining our contributions to the project. We contribute engineering, materials, and skilled labor. Each village provides land, local materials, and the weeks of labor it takes to build the school. This approach ensures that schools are built with a community, not for a community.

Stories That Inspire

See how buildOn, Fitch Group, and School in a Bag are expanding access to education through schools, literacy programs, and essential supplies worldwide.
When Education Comes Full Circle
See how buildOn, Fitch Group, and School in a Bag are expanding access to education worldwide.
READ MORE
See how our movement grew from one school to 3,000, powered by community, service, and the belief that every child deserves to learn.
3,000 Schools Strong
See how our movement grew from one school to 3,000, powered by community, service, and the belief that every child deserves to learn.
READ MORE
In Cerro Alto, Guatemala, a new buildOn school funded by Denis and Britta Nayden and built by the community and The Questers Trek team is transforming education, increasing attendance, and giving children the opportunity to dream bigger.
A New Beginning
In Cerro Alto, Guatemala, a new buildOn school is transforming education, increasing attendance, and giving children the opportunity to dream bigger.
READ MORE