We recently connected with Grace VanBeek and have shared our conversation below.
Grace, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about serving the underserved.
One Thousand Schools (OTS), previously Students Helping Honduras, is an international organization working to alleviate extreme poverty and gang violence through youth education and empowerment. As the University of Michigan chapter of OTS, we work to support our school builds through fundraisers and social events. throughout the school year. We also have the opportunity to travel to Honduras for service trips where we get to meet the communities we have fundraised for and participate in the construction of a school.
Honduras has a 66% poverty rate and is currently the most unequal country in Latin America. Crime and violence remain rampant, as Honduras continues to have one of the highest homicide rates in the world. 37% of Honduran children of secondary school age (12-16) are out of school. Of the poorest quintile, 62% are out of school.
We believe those statistics can be changed.
Our organization through a partnership model, connects with communities in need through Honduras to provide accessible education by building or re-building schools. For example, we are just finishing up construction on our most recent school project #66 – Centro Educativo Pre Básico Yamileth Portillo located in Barrio el Centro, in the municipality of Mezapa, Bela, Atlantida. One Thousand Schools has partnered with this community to build 3 new classrooms for this community that began first attending this school and coming to classes under a tree. More than 50 years ago, community members came together to build a school that they divided into two classrooms with cardboard. This school has served over 900 students since it opened, with 90 students currently attending.
Grace, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
My name is Grace VanBeek and I will be a senior this fall at the University of Michigan School of Nursing. My freshman year of college, in 2020, I got involved with One Thousand Schools, at the time Students Helping Honduras at UofM, through a virtual student organization fair. Over the course of the past three years, I have been able to take on a leadership role and serve as the President of our chapter at UofM. This position has allowed me to build so many connections with many people at Michigan, other Universities, and in Honduras!
This organization is so special to me because I have an aunt that is originally from Honduras. Being able to relate this culture to my family and give back with my time and resources has been invaluable to me. Beyond my familial connection, I have grown to cherish the core values and priorities of this organization. Our guiding principles are job creation, community ownership, sustainability, and local leadership; as volunteers we play a supporting role, or are “the sidekicks” to the local leaders that are fighting the battle of poverty. These pillars set our organization apart because of our consistent focus on creating real and long lasting change that begins by asking hard questions and truly listening to the needs of these communities.
I am so proud of the progress OTS has made. Since the founding of this organization in 2007, 63 schools have been completed, over 17,000 students have been impacted, and 120 teachers have been trained. Furthermore, Villa Soleada, the original community project, has created over 60 jobs and provided 44 homes for families. These numbers will only grow as we continue on our mission of building 1,000 schools in Honduras!
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
One piece of One Thousand Schools is the commitment to education of volunteers. During our service trips, we have a variety of reflection activities that provide a space for contemplation on topics such as: voluntourism, gang violence, and foreign aid, among others. One of these reflections is reading and discussing an essay by Shawn Humphrey, “We are Sidekicks.” Humphrey’s candid words disclose how we will not end poverty it will be the “men and women advocating for change in their community, holding their politicians accountable, challenging the status quo, and taking on vested interests.” Humphrey goes on to challenge readers to ask themselves “How do you view your role in the story of poverty’s end? Hero? Or, Sidekick?”
This essay was convicting for me personally because it challenged a subconscious perspective that I held. I had to learn that while I have a role to play, I can make a difference, and I can be of assistance, I will not be a hero. In returning to Michigan after this trip, I was able to implement many lessons I learned to better lead our chapter of OTS. In this way, part of the role our chapter members can play is in committing to personal education; by expanding our knowledge on these topics we are better able to partner with the communities in Honduras.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
The COVID-19 pandemic undeniably impacted every individual, organization, and business. For me, this period of time occurred when I was entering into college which presented many challenges. This also happened to be the time that I joined One Thousand Schools. At this time, all of the meetings were being held virtually which inevitably caused membership commitment to decrease. Many members of our organization also graduated after this year which left us in a position of uncertainty. The next year, when we were allowed to return to in-person meetings and events, I stepped into the presidential role. As an organization and executive board, we had to learn the process of hosting an in-person organization, with fundraisers and social events. Despite the challenges we faced with this transition and many different lessons we learned throughout the journey, we have committed to the growth of our organization. We have seen the fruit of our investment and look forward to investing in the next set of leaders as many of our executive board members will graduate at the end of this coming year. 
Contact Info:
- Website: https://sites.google.com/umich.edu/otsumich/home
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/otsumich/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OTSUmich
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@SHHonduras
- Other: Check out our national organization at: https://onethousandschools.com
Image Credits
Some photos taken by Grace Beal Insta: https://www.instagram.com/gracebealphoto/ | Website: https://www.gracebealphoto.com