JWL and Fe y Alegría collaboration paves pathways to higher education and global exchanges for excluded youth in South America
With more than 1,300 students enrolled in the GEL programme across Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru, since 2022, the JWL-Fe y Alegría partnership is a prime example of what can be achieved through global partnerships between local and international organisations and educational institutions, in service of the excluded.
“I feel that the GEL programme has truly connected me to the world in new ways,” says Evelyn, a graduate of the Global English Language programme in Joya de los Sachas, who now studies Medicine at the Pontificia Universidad Católica of Ecuador.
“Learning English has opened my mind to different ways of thinking and to opportunities I hadn’t seen before,” she told us. “I know that speaking this language will allow me to keep growing academically, access more resources, and learn directly from people who live in English-speaking countries. I’m confident that speaking English will open many doors for me, both professionally and personally.”
Jesuit Worldwide Learning (JWL) and Fe y Alegría are working together to provide youth in excluded communities in multiple countries across South America with transformative higher education opportunities. At present, JWL and Fe y Alegría support youth in 14 community learning centres across Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru.
Whether members of Indigenous, rural or urban poor, forcibly displaced, or isolated communities, our students seek higher education opportunities to achieve not only their goals but also serve their communities, and care for their environment.
For most of these students, the journey begins with the Global English Language (GEL) programme. In some countries, like Ecuador, English language skills are a requirement to attend university. High school students who lack the required level of proficiency or haven’t studied the language are therefore at a disadvantage.
To increase youth’s preparedness and chances for enrolment in higher education with JWL or at a local university without delay, upon completion of secondary school studies, JWL and Fe y Alegría offer GEL classes in 12 high schools.
These language skills may open doors to greater educational and professional opportunities but also, as Evelyn mentions, to connect with peers across the globe, exchanging knowledge, experiences, and advocating for action around issues that concern their communities.
With more than 1,300 students enrolled in the GEL programme across Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru, since 2022, the JWL-Fe y Alegría partnership is a prime example of what can be achieved through global partnerships between local and international organisations and educational institutions, in service of the excluded.