Ayudante profile #3: Teodora
When speaking with Teodora, it quickly becomes apparent that you are talking to a smart, determined young woman, confident of her direction in life. This is someone who is going somewhere.
Teodora is currently in her second year as an ayudante at La Esperanza Granada, supporting the teachers and volunteers in Pablo Antonio Cuadra school. Her first year was spent working with kids on computers in two schools, Nueva Esperanza and Escudo, and her desire to succeed and to see the kids progress has given her a firm preference for working with small groups.
“Although we can do a lot of good in the
classrooms, we are most effective when working with small groups, or on
computers. Kids focus better with fewer distractions and more dedicated
support, and we have a chance to tailor our methods to each child.”
Having worked with numerous volunteers,
Teodora is also willing to offer an insight into what makes a good or bad
volunteer.
“Most volunteers are great – they are
enthusiastic, hardworking and make a real difference to the kids. The very best
are those who bring skills and experience with them, or who come up with new
ideas.
“The worst are those who think this it should
be one big party and who don’t take the job seriously, turning up late,
sometimes hungover, and not paying attention to or remembering what we say.
When that happens, it’s a real missed opportunity, for both them and the kids.”
Teodora is in a good position to appreciate
the value of the opportunities we can sometimes take for granted in more
developed nations. Like Juan Carlos, Teodora´s High
School was only able to offer three years tuition instead of the normal five,
so she had to switch to technical college.
Encouraged by her father, she studied
construction, and dreamed of going on to study engineering at university.
However, this would have meant studying at a particular university in Managua,
and their fees proved prohibitively expensive.
Instead, Teodora went to work in the office
of a construction company. Her work there included all aspects of office
administration, and she found a natural instinct for managing the company´s
books. A career as an accountant began to look like an increasingly attractive
option, and she signed up to study accountancy at university.
“The first year was really tough, because I
had to work constantly to be able to pay the fees. I don’t even remember how
many different jobs I did that year! But I do remember how exhausting it was,
and how little time I had left for studying.”
After hearing about La Esperanza Granada
through a friend, Teodora became involved with the project and was soon lucky
enough to receive a sponsorship from Project Pulsera to fund the rest of her degree. Although balancing her
studies with her duties as an ayudante remains a challenge, Teodora is clear on
the benefits it brings.
“It’s made an enormous difference to me, and
I’m hugely grateful. Without sponsorship, I don’t know how I would have been
able to carry on studying.”
Unlike most students with another two years
of studying to go, Teodora already has a clear plan for life after university.
“I hope to be able to start a business with
a couple of friends. We are all either accountants or lawyers, and we’d like to
create a professional services company, providing legal and accountancy
services and advice to other businesses.”
Although common in more developed countries,
this sort of integrated services company is a rare thing here. Having spotted
this gap in the market, Teodora could be just the person to bring it to
Nicaragua.
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