About
Our fundamental purpose is to ensure education in Guatemala and to bring new opportunities to those who need it. Guatemala is a country with high illiteracy levels, caused by many factors. Our dedicated directors and staff are committed to addressing this pervasive issue at it’s root, with Kindergarten and Preschool-level curriculum curated specifically with the cultural intricacies of our communities in mind.
Our Mission
Prepare at-risk Guatemalan children for the first grade by establishing adequate Preschool & Kindergarten education.
Our Vision
Break the cycle of poverty in Guatemala by reducing the high rate of drop-out and repetition of children in the first grade.
Our Goal
All of our students succeed within our programs, pass the first grade, and continue their educations.
Our history
Let’s Be Ready’s origins began with Nora, the Sacatepéquez director of the program. Nora conceived our current business model of establishing functioning classrooms in local houses within the communities that we serve. Over the last decade, this program has grown from Nora’s classroom to more than 60; almost all headed by young women who have been trained to open preschools in their homes or any other available space in their community.
In 2014, Fred Zambroski along with other directors of the program had plans to expand, therefore Magical Classroom emerged as a new initiative to serve our most rural communities. Magical Classroom also provides preschool education, with the main difference being that its facilitators (or teachers) are often youth leaders from the same community.
Fred Zambroski
Executive Director
I funded Lets Be Ready myself up until September of 2008, when I began to look for additional funding to expand the programs. I love the work, and plan to stay as long as the programs are helping the neediest in Guatemala with the support of the local people.
The project was started by a Guatemalan woman and is currently run by Guatemalan women. It is a perfect example of a grassroots development where decisions are made by Guatemalans for a program.
Let’s be Ready was set up to raise funds for the original project in Guatemala called Pequenos Pero Listos (Small but Ready in English) and for the more recent version for rural areas called Aula Magica (Magical Classrooms in English)
Meet our Facilitators
Quiché Facilitators
| Ondina Soto El Quiche Coordinator Education is an essential part of life, so I am proud to be able to contribute to my community. |
Hobbies: reading and listening to music
| Freddy Terraza Teacher/Facilitator I like working with children and giving them a good education because I know that they are the future of my beloved Guatemala. |
Hobbies: knitting
| Ronaldo Mérida Teacher/Facilitator I like working with children because I want my community to have children ready to face new challenges. |
Hobbies: playing soccer
| Greysi del Valle Teacher/Facilitator I love working with children because in every class we gain new experiences and I contribute to the development of my community. |
Hobbies: listening to music
| Rosa Del Barrio Teacher/Facilitator For me, the reason for working with children is so that they are ready to adapt to another level. |
Hobbies: reading
| Tere Xinic Teacher/Facilitator Being part of the children’s growth and learning process is a privilege. |
Hobbies: watching the news
| Lety Soto Teacher/Facilitator I feel blessed to support education and children in my community. I consider it a success for children. Thank you Aula Mágica for this contribution. |
Hobbies: being with children
| Julio Pérez Teacher/Facilitator For me, it is a pleasure and a responsibility to work with the children. |
Hobbies: listening to music
| Juan Escobar Teacher/Facilitator I like to educate children at an early age as they will be agents of change in society. |
Hobbies: read the Bible and translate it into Ixil.
| Elisabeth Gallego Teacher/Facilitator Aula Mágica is an innovative program that has given me the opportunity to bring education to children in my community. I am happy about it. |
Hobbies: listening to music
Sololá Facilitators
| Lucely Cumes Teacher/Facilitator Being a preschool teacher means the excitement of their learning, believing in their processes and abilities, and knowing they are different, unique, and special. |
Hobbies: going for a walk and discover new places.
| Amalia Miranda Teacher/Facilitator I like teaching children that need so. |
Hobbies: going for a walk.
| Martha Ajcalón Teacher/Facilitator Working with children is an opportunity to share my ideas and to listen to others. |
Hobbies: looking at cooking videos.
| Rosa Lejá Teacher/Facilitator To educate is not to make him do something he already knew, but to make him into someone who did not exist. |
Hobbies: searching for new ideas to work with children.
| Irma Ajcalón Teacher/Facilitator Working with children is wonderful because they transmit their joy and their witticisms, and at the same time we help them on their way in the world of learning. |
Hobbies: reading.
| Rosalía Sac Teacher/Facilitator A new opportunity to undertake the fruits of my profession and at the same time a challenge to reach my short and long-term goals in preschool teaching/learning. |
Hobbies: listening to music and learning new choreographies.
| Rosario Sacuuj Sololá Coordinator It is a great joy and blessing to be able to teach and learn with the children in my community, to feel mutual affection, and to contribute to each other’s education. |
Hobbies: going for a walk and seeing sunsets.
| Thalía Raxtún Teacher/Facilitator For me, working in the education of my community is a source of pride as I am contributing to the professional life of each child. |
Hobbies: teaching children.
Huehuetenango Facilitators
Rocael Ixcoy
Huehuetenango Coordinator
To turn on a light in each child, the preschool stage is where children begin to learn, to experiment and with each of the activities that take place in the classrooms, each child learns and experiences new things, which feed their knowledge day by day.
Hobbies: playing Soccer, playing musical instruments, singing, photography
| Albertina Mérida Teacher/Facilitator Working with children is something beautiful for me, it is exciting to share with children and that I can teach them and at the same time learn from them. |
Hobbies: watching sunsets and listening to music
| Gaspar Samuel Teacher/Facilitator To provide good teaching in a strategic, flexible and understandable way that helps shape each child and makes learning in elementary school easy, is like opening the way and seeing the light. |
Hobbies: reading, researching ways to deal with hyperactive children in school, singing children’s music, and playing the guitar.
| May Luz Teacher/Facilitator Effort, working with young children requires responsibility in teaching them appropriately, being kind to them, and instilling responsibility in the classroom. |
Hobbies: listening to music.
| Lucía Antonia Teacher/Facilitator To me, working with children is motivating because it instills in me values such as responsibility, and being patient and I also learn from them. It is nice to work with children, with a lot of affection for them. |
Hobbies: singing, playing and talking with the kids.
| Lidia Cano Teacher/Facilitator Joy and confidence, I feel very good when I am sharing with the children, being with the children gives me peace of mind. |
Hobbies: playing with preschool children.
| Maribel López Teacher/Facilitator For me, working with children is very beautiful and I am giving them the ability to make a difference in children’s lives, helping and teaching them at an early stage of their lives. |
Hobbies: listening to music.
| Raymunda Rosaria Teacher/Facilitator An opportunity to work with children is like an investment of time. It is fun to teach them so that they have a good learning experience and we can share many things with them. |
Hobbies: listening to music and dancing with the kids.