There are Places Where Children Only Dream of School

A little girl stands on her front doorstep, thumbs hooked under the straps of her new backpack, grinning wide as her mother snaps a photo. It’s the first in what will be a long line of “First Day of School” photos in their family album.

Halfway around the world, a girl the same age wakes up in a tent, far away from the home she knew. Though they have few toys to speak of, she plays with the other children in her camp. There are rumors that the children will get to go to school later in the year, but her parents insist that these are just rumors.

A young man unpacks a handful of boxes in a cramped dorm room, anxiously waiting to meet his new roommate. It’s his first time away from home, and he hopes he can manage his coursework while he adjusts to university life. Classes start in just a few days, and there’s still so much to do.

In Kenya, far away from the roaring streets of Nairobi, another young man stands watch over a herd of cattle. The family’s survival depends on him, so there was never time—let alone money—for school. He worries about his family having enough to eat, as the weather has grown unpredictable and crops have suffered through sustained drought.

A teenage girl begs her father to drop her off around the corner. She’s in middle school now, and it isn’t cool to get dropped off by your parents anymore. Shouldering her full-to-bursting backpack, she shuffles the last few blocks to her new school, keeping an eye out for old friends.

In a rural part of India, another teenage girl is preparing to be married. Her bride price will bring her family much needed income. They tell her it is improper for a wife to go to school, that her job now is to have children and keep the home.

Education may be a fundamental human right, but it remains a dream for too many.

As we traipse into the dog days of summer, children in the United States have a couple more weeks to run wild and get their wiggles out before taking their seats in a new classroom, meeting a new teacher, and getting back on track with homework. For parents, this shift likely comes with a sigh of relief as the family returns to the comfort of routine. But, the routine feels so normal at this point that it can be easy to forget that there are millions of children for whom the very idea of school is a dream.

The good news? Between 2000 and 2013, the number of out of school children has declined globally.

Unfortunately, that decline stalled in 2007, and international funding for education is at an all-time-low. In 2015, less than 2% of humanitarian aid was spent on education.

This marked decrease in funding, and the immediate need for solutions, is what drives us not only to partner on the ground with local organizations, but to champion the cause for the people we serve: children and young people around the world. International education still needs awareness, funding, and support, and it’s up to all of us.

•          75% of refugee adolescents are out of secondary school. 62 million children are out of school entirely because they live in countries affected by conflict.
•          In Sub-Saharan Africa, less than 10% of children who enroll in primary school make it through the education system to university.
•          Every year, 15 million girls are married before the age of 18; of those 15 million, many are denied their right to education.

You can help.

Because education is the key to so many other things, like health, gender equality, peace, and justice, it is crucial that we focus on solutions that will break down the barriers to this fundamental human right. Please join us by spreading the word, and consider making a tax-deductible donation to help fund our much-needed education projects for the people who need it most around the world: