February 2010 - SchoolBOX Volunteers Make it Possible!

An amazing group of SchoolBOX volunteers, ranging in age from 13 to 65, joined us in Central America to build 2 more classrooms for the Rueben Dario school in Leon. Working alongside students, parents and community members, the group did an awesome job of moving the construction forward.

View a short video at youtube

February 2010 - Press Release - Sleep Country Canada embraces SchoolBOX expansion to Toronto to help Central American children access an education

Read the press release here...

February 2010 - SchoolBOX releases its February newsletter.

SchoolBOX's February newsletter is available here...

January 2010 - SchoolBOX is delighted to announce the arrival of Bryant, our newest member.

SchoolBOX Director of Operations, Ronald Chavarria Arauz and wife Yasmine Lopez welcomed their new son Bryant into the world in December. Ronald and Yazmine live with their two sons in the SchoolBOX office in Managua, Nicaragua.

January 2010 - Union Espana's new classroom is finished!

Working alongside dedicated community members, SchoolBOX staff has successfully completed the construction of a new classroom for the Union Espana School near the city of Leon in North West Nicaragua. Construction was challenging, as there was no water available in the community. Thankfully, this challenge was overcome by transporting water to the site in plastic barrels. SchoolBOX has now built 15 classrooms in Nicaragua! Thank you for making it all possible.

December 2009 - Sleep Country Canada gives creatively.

Thanks to Sleep Country Canada CEO Steve Gunn, SchoolBOX now has an office in Toronto. Sleep County Canada is providing office space, with a dedicated phone line and wireless internet, free of charge for SchoolBOX. It is an incredible gift for our organization!

The new office is located at:

December 2009 - Construction of Classroom #15

SchoolBOX is building a new classroom for the Union Espana school located near the City of Leon in North Western Nicaragua. The average household in the Union Espana community has 6 children and a total monthly income of $40 US ($480 annually). This is the 15th classroom that SchoolBOX has built in Central America. SchoolBOX aims to finish construction of the Union Espana classroom by January 2010.

December 2009 - CHANCE Foundation donates $15,000 US to SchoolBOX.

CHANCE is an Ottawa based foundation that works to give children a better future. This incredibly generous gift will be used to create a pre-school building for the Jezreel School located in Managua, Nicaragua. For more information on CHANCE please visit: www.chancefoundation.ca

November 2009- Celebrate with SchoolBOX Gifts!

Please consider giving the gift of education this holiday season. These simple and cost effective presents make education possible for some of the poorest children in the Americas. In addition, enjoy an open letter from SchoolBOX President Tom Affleck as we come together to celebrate an incredible year! View our newletter for more details.

October 2009- School Construction #5! The Rueben Dario school is finished!

The four classroom facility is our largest construction project to date. The new facility is providing space for hundreds of children to get a basic education. SchoolBOX will be building two more classrooms and a soccer pitch for the Rueben Dario school in 2010.

September 2009- A SchoolBOX Wedding

It is official, SchoolBOX President Tom Affleck and AYES Creator Sarah Kerr are now ‘Mr. & Mrs.’ Tom and Sarah fell in love while building a library for a SchoolBOX partner school in Nicaragua. Friends and family donated over $1,500.00 to SchoolBOX in celebration which will be used in the construction of a new school in Managua, Nicaragua.

September 2009- A SchoolBOX Super Hero is honored.

Jennette Affleck was given the SchoolBOX Super Hero Award at this years’ Latin Fiesta Fundraiser in Almonte, Ontario. Hundreds of SchoolBOX supporters applauded as Jennette received the award for her incredible dedication to the children of Nicaragua and her son, SchoolBOX President Tom Affleck. ‘SchoolBOX would simply not exist without the unconditional and loving support of my Mom, SchoolBOX Super Hero Jennette Affleck’ said Tom.

August 2009 - Tools4Schools: 4 new classrooms!

The construction of 4 new classrooms for the Ruben Dario School has begun, and it is a dream come true to the students and community. Students that were studying at 50 to a room in plastic insulated containers, or under temporary scrap metal structures, will soon be able to move to brand new classrooms. The school of over 2,000 students is packed with eager minds and the desire to learn, with the construction of new classrooms, hope and a brighter future for the community is being built brick by brick.

August 2009 - Supplies4Success: 1,023 packets to 1,023 happy students

In the city of Leon on an ordinary Wednesday morning, 1,023 students had their school semester brightened by the delivery of SchoolBOX Supplies4Success packets. Each student received their personal packet to help them with the resources needed to continue studying: 2 notebooks, 2 pencils, 1 eraser, 1 ruler and 1 sharpener. These basic materials are often what stand in the way of a student being able to attend school as they cannot afford the materials. With their Supplies4Succes packet students are ready for another semester!

August 2009 - SchoolBOX announces the 4th annual Latin Fiesta

Please join us at 8pm on Friday September 11th at the Almonte Agricultural Hall for an amazing evening of music, dancing and presentations. Celebrate the fact that SchoolBOX is now helping 5250 children go to school in Central America. Performers include: Banda Sarandoga (an eight piece Latin Band), Salsa Ole (an amazing salsa dance group), and Sole Unity (Almonte's newest youth band). Take advantage of an incredible silent auction which includes a one week stay at a farm in France, and a one week stay at a beach house in Costa Rica.

August 2009 - AYES Program has a powerful impact.

August 2009: AYES Program has a powerful impact.
'I cannot express in words how amazing of a time I had working with Schoolbox, my feelings are so strong and I am so grateful for being so blessed and being able to help others.

AYES is an amazing life changing program, it has changed my life forever in amazingly awesome ways..some of which i dont fully understand yet, but i know it has.

I now understand what is important in life, the gift of giving and the joy of living in the moment. I am going to continue to work with schoolbox...if i can..for the rest of my life hopefully.'

Kristy Auger, AYES Participant August 2009

Read more about AYES in the Ottawa Citizen here

August 2009 - Vitality Media AYES documentary!

Jeff Kopas, producer and director or Vitality Media, a Canadian based film and documentary company is in Nicaragua with SchoolBOX working on a documentary covering the Aboriginal Youth Empowering Students volunteer project. Jeff will be shadowing the group as their experience in Nicaragua unfolds; documenting the various emotions and impressions made on the adventurous youth as they work with an impoverished community in the north of Nicaragua, building classrooms and hope for future generations, whilst sharing their culture with the local community.

August 2009 - 1st AYES Program Volunteer Trip

The SchoolBOX Aboriginal Youth Empowering Students program (AYES) sees their first volunteer group arrive in Nicaragua to work on the Tools4Schools construction in Leon. The group of 5 adventurous Canadian Aboriginals have come from various reserves in Canada to unite in Nicaragua to share their cultural heritages between themselves and with the Ruben Dario Community for whom they are building a school. The cultural emphasis is the focus of the program not only for the group participants to learn from each other but also to represent to the community who they are and why they are in Nicaragua. The hope these youth are instilling in the Leon community will last for generations as they receive the education facilities they deserve to encourage them to continue their primary education.

July 2009 - Ruben Dario Construction Begins!

The Ruben Dario Reparto community based 20 minutes outside the main centre of the city of León is a poor and densely populated part of the state of León. Over 2,000 students attend the Ruben Dario Reparto School. The school was in desperate need of classrooms with 4 grades sitting over 50 students to a class in plastic containers in which the heat is stifling by 8am, and the 1st and 2nd grade classes under a rickety scrap metal and wooden structure. SchoolBOX is building a 4 classroom pavilion meaning that 4 classes can move to bright airy new classrooms where they no longer have to mop up the perspiration on the floor after each class. These four new classrooms are the beginning to transforming the school and lives of the students.

July 2009 - Tools4Schools helps Little Corn Island School complete their dream

In February 2009 SchoolBOX built an extra classroom for the overcrowded school on Little Corn Island, in the Caribbean of Nicaragua. This was a desperately needed project. The young community had 225 students in 2 classrooms. The third classroom was a huge stepping stone to completing the community’s dream of a school with adequate facilities on their island. The parents themselves had begun a project called “One brick for my School”, encouraging each student to raise $1 for a cement block to construct two more classrooms. SchoolBOX was so impressed with their dedication that we decided to complete the remaining funds needed and helped finish the new building. The school is now big enough to fit all the eager students of the island; a dream that has taken years to become a reality.

June 2009 - SchoolBOX Movie Night Fundraiser JULY 21st 2009

The Laurier Student Group is hosting a FREE Movie Night for anyone in the Waterloo, Ontario area! This event is in support of building the Jezreel School in La Primavera, Nicaragua, one of Central America’ largest and poorest squatter neighbour hoods. Come along and enjoy the cool night air viewing a Hollywood Blockbuster. There will be a silent auction filled with Nicaraguan handicrafts, special trips and treats! So break open your piggy bank, round up friends and family and drive on down to St. Jacobs Farmers Market for a FREE open-air night at the movies in Ontario that benefits children in Nicaragua! Please sign up for the event at this evite.

May 2009 - 464 Supplies4Success Packets, Las Quemadas, Leon

464 students at SchoolBOX partner schools in Las Quemadas received their very own Supplies4Success packets. Parents and family members came to the schools that morning as well to welcome the SchoolBOX Nicaraguan team and thank them for supplying their children with packets. School material is a luxury that many parents simply cannot afford. Las Quemadas is one of the poorer rural areas surrounding the city of Leon. Students can expect to walk up to an hour to their nearest school. Families earn a living farming peanuts, sesame and sugar cane. The average student’s family survives on less than US$2 a day. A Supplies4Success packet contains 2 notebooks, 2 pencils, 1 sharpener, 1 eraser and 1 ruler.

May 2009 - BIG smiles all round! 464 students with toothbrushes…

Dental disease is common in Nicaragua. A survey conducted by Medical Teams International found that only 5.7% of children living in rural Nicaragua had ever visited a dentist. The Big Smiles program promotes dental hygiene and develops the habit within students to brush their teeth at least once a day whilst they are at school. This reduces the risk of disease and cavities. 464 students in Las Quemadas received a tooth brush and cup with their name on it for sole use at school. Teachers were supplied with 42 toothpastes to ensure that their students brush their teeth. The Big Smiles program encourages teachers to not only show students how to brush their teeth but to discuss basic dental hygiene issues from sugary sweets to fruit.

May 2009 - Soccer Dreams 54 young soccer players with uniforms

Under the Soccer Dreams program and in preparation for the 'First SchoolBOX Soccer Tournament' 6 football teams from the schools in Las Quemadas, Leon, were kitted out with attractive uniforms. The teams of 9 players were so excited they immediately donned their new kit over their uniforms and refused to take them off to attend class…now these are true soccer players!

May 2009 - The First SchoolBOX Soccer Tournament

Truck loads of students with their families turned up bright and early on a sunny Las Quemadas morning to anticipate the start of the First SchoolBOX Soccer Tournament. 6 teams, 1 winner. The primary school students making up the teams began to discuss tactics whilst their captains discussed game rules and timings with the SchoolBOX Nicaraguan team organising the event along with the school's Director and a local radio show host. News of the Soccer Tournament event was broadcast on the local radio Telica 92.3FM. The atmosphere was electric as the 6 teams whittled down to the two finalists. Parents encouraged from the sidelines and fans went wild when the favourites Los Maribios won! The winning team's players received medals, 2 soccer balls and a trophy. The runners up each received a medal as well and 1 soccer ball.

April 2009 - 2,019 Supplies4Success Packets on Ometepe

There were 2,019 smiley faces on Ometepe Island during April as SchoolBOX distributed their Supplies4Success packets to 11 partner schools. SchoolBOX gives each student one packet per school year. A Supplies4Success packet contains 2 notebooks, 2 pencils, 1 sharpener, 1 eraser and 1 ruler. Most children in Nicaragua do not attend class as their families cannot afford such materials. For US$2 a packet one child can continue studying the entire school year.

April 2009 - Completion of the San Pedro de La Flor School on Ometepe

A fabulous group of volunteers began the San Pedro de La Flor Pre-School construction in March. A few weeks later SchoolBOX's 4th school build was completed. The school and community are now under the cover of the Ministry of Education ensuring that the teacher, Faviola, now receives a salary and the students receive curriculum and materials. The building is a focal point for the community acting as a meeting hall and adult night school too.

March 2009 - School Build #4: Pre School, Ometepe Island, Nicaragua

SchoolBox's fourth School Building project was a huge success for the rural community of San Pedro de La Flor. Working alongside dedicated community members, SchoolBox constructed a one-room Pre-School which now stands as the focal point for the region. Not only will this building serve its young students, it will host as an adult education and community centre on evenings and weekends. The Ministry of Education will assume all operating costs of the school including teacher salaries.

March 2009 - Return to San Pedro: Volunteer Group builds Pre-School

Almonte resident, Michelle Kay, returns to Nicaragua after two years: with her son, a volunteer group, and the materials to create change in a rural village. In 2007, SchoolBox took Michelle to visit the San Pedro School which was attending classes in a small, hot, damp, earthen floor building on rented land. She left Nicaragua with a determination to build this community a proper school. With the help of her Church and a group of volunteers, (Including Helen Wells our first European visitor), she finally accomplished her dream. Thank You to Michelle and all the volunteers who made this possible!

February 2009 - Reading Week in the Sun: Carrying Dirt!

An incredible group of volunteers from Canada and the United States joined with SchoolBox on their Reading Week to construct a much needed classroom for an overflowing school on Little Corn Island. This fantastic group of University students and a teacher, worked hard alongside kids and parents- carrying bricks, earth and sand, mixing cement, tying re-bar, and levelling the floor to build a beautiful classroom. They made it all the way up to the roof in a week- an impressive feat for an island without any transportation! Thanks to all our volunteers who made this build possible!

February 2009 - Little Corn Island, Big Success: School Build #3

Thanks to the help of a wonderful Student Trip, we were able to construct a classroom for the overflowing school on Little Corn Island, Nicarauga. The 225 students were rotating learning periods between 7am and 8pm to ensure they could all study each day. They began a project called "One brick for my School", encouraging each student to raise $1 for a cement block. SchoolBox was so impressed by their motivation and collaborated with the ministry of education to build three new classrooms. With this new building, the school is now big enough to fit all the eager students of the island; a dream that has taken years to become a reality.

February 2009 - Tables & Chairs: Simple Tools for the School in the Dump

The students at Juntos Con Tigo, a partner school in the Municipal trash dump of Managua, had been studying with 2 old broken desks or just on the floor. They were delighted when we brought them brand new tables and chairs, sponsored by Elephant Thoughts, a partner charity in Canada. These simple tools have made all the difference in their classroom environment and are gratefully appreciated by staff and students.

February 2009 - Back to Class in February with 1,323 Educational Packages

Over 1300 students in 11 partner schools in the Caribbean and Managua received their SchoolBox Supplies4Success educational packages to begin their new school year in February. Each package contains 2 notebooks, 2 pencils, 1 pencil sharpener, 1 eraser, and 1 ruler. These supplies, worth US $2/package, provide each student with the basic materials needed to participate in class. Many children throughout Nicaragua cannot afford these basic supplies, which means they cannot go to school.

January 2009 - Septic Tank installed in the Trash Dump

The 40 Juntos Con Tigo Education Centre students in La Chureca, the municipal dump outside Managua, now have a fully functioning bathroom and septic system. Thanks to Elephant Thoughts who collaborated on the project, the students and teachers are benefiting from a cleaner learning environment. The students live in small shacks made from scrap metal and materials found on the dump. The lesson of hygiene and experiencing cleanliness for the part for the day that they are in school is vital for their health and ability to study.

January 2009 - A Brighter Breezier Future

The 120 Jezreel School students started their second semester with a wonderful surprise: fans and a safe and reliable electrical system, thanks to Elephant Thoughts who collaborated on the Project. The Jezreel School is situated in La Primavera, one of the poorest squatter neighbourhoods in Central America. Nowadays the students can count on steady electricity instead of having it go off for days. As the Director of the school says "We now have even more students whereas before they used to leave early or stopped coming altogether as the conditions were so hot and dark. We are very happy!"

December 2008 - SchoolBOX Newsletter, Winter 2008

It is time to rejoice! On the eve of 2009 our organization is empowering 3490 children in Central America to get a basic education. Read all about our results in 2008: Click here to read the newsletter.

December 2008 - Two new schools in 2008!

The new San Santiago School will be open for business when Nicaraguan students return to school in 2009. With three new classrooms and a new library (Blaney Library) the School will shine as a beacon of hope for the small community located on Big Corn Island off of the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua.

November 2008 - Press Release:

SchoolBOX charity sees 969% increase in year-over-year donations and embarks on trip to Nicaragua to finish second school for children in need. Read more...

November 2008 - A Reunion with a Difference!

Eight ´lads´ from the Ottawa Valley will travel with their respective families to Central America to build hope for an impoverished community. It is going to be a truly wonderful experience, as the group works along side SchoolBOX staff, community members and students to rebuild the San Santiago School located off of the East Coast of Nicaragua. The original school was destroyed during Hurricane Mitch in 1988. SchoolBOX began working on the new School building in March 2008.

October 2008 - SchoolBOX expands to reach 26 communities.

This month SchoolBOX will expand the number of schools we partner with in Nicaragua from 19 to 26. The new partner schools are located in an extremely impoverished rural area known as El Occidental (located 90 km from the city of Leon). SchoolBOX will now be working with over 3500 primary students. Thank YOU!

September 2008 - SchoolBOX's 3rd annual Latin Dance fundraiser is a huge success!

Over 200 people joined us at the Almonte Agricultural Hall for an evening of wonderful music and great times as we celebrated SchoolBOX. To think that one notebook, a pencil and a simple dream two and a half years ago could grow into a committed and efficient organization serving thousands of children and building schools is awesome. We are so grateful! Proceeds from the evening surpassed all expectations: $21,000!!! Thanks to Todd and Laura Hughes of Calgary for making that number possible.

September 2008 - Appointment of Andrea Paltzer as Coordinator of Operations for Central America.

SchoolBOX proudly announces the appointment of Andrea Paltzer to the position of Coordinator of Operations in Central America. Andrea's administrative skills and passion will be great assets to our young organization. Andrea studied at the University of Bristol in the UK, speaks 7 languages and has extensive experience working in Central America.

August 2008 - The Mark Mcloughlin School is open for business

Its Done! The Mark Mcloughlin School is open for business in the San Jose Del Sur community, Ometepe Nicaragua. The new school building will be used by 60+ preschoolers during the day and adult literacy programs in the evening. The community is eccstatic! Thank you to everyone who made it possible.

August 2008 - market2world communications inc. makes a major committment to SchoolBOX.

market2world communications inc., a public relations and marketing agency based in Almonte, has pledged the company's talents to champion SchoolBOX to regional, national and international media for the next year at no charge to our organization. We're looking forward to telling our story with the help of market2world's expert PR team on our site. Watch this space for lots more press!

July 2008 - SchoolBOX completes the first stage of the Blaney Library Project

SchoolBOX completes the first stage of the Blaney Library Project located on a small island off of the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua. Children of the South End community on Corn Island can now access well over 5000 wonderful books thanks to the generous donations of the Almonte community in Ontario, Canada. A second phase of the project, which includes a small computer lab and additional infrastructure, will begin in October of 2008.

June 2008 - SchoolBOX partners with Elephant Thoughts

SchoolBOX partners with Elephant Thoughts, an educational Charity from Canada, to provide new desks for the Jezreel School in Managua Nicaragua. The new desks will help to accomodate the dramatic increase in enrollment that the Jezreel School has experienced since SchoolBOX secured an adequate building for the school in 2007.

June 2008 - SchoolBOX gets a new office!

Thanks to a generous donation by Nicaraguan business man Francisco Guadamuz, SchoolBOX is moving into a spacious new office building in Managua, Nicaragua. The new office includes living quarters for Operations Coordinator Ronald Chavarria Arauz and his family. This is a great step forward for our organization as it provides us with a safe and more formal office from which to organize our efforts. Things keep improving for the 'Little Organization that Could.'

June 2008 - Volunteers from Western Canada lay the foundation for a new school

SchoolBOX welcomed an inspiring group of volunteers from Western Canada to build a new school for the San Jose community on Ometepe Island in Lake Nicaragua. In 10 days the group managed to get a tremendous amount done and literally laid the foundation for a better future in this rural community.

May 2008 - SchoolBOX builds New Washrooms

Two impoverished schools in Managua, the Capital of Nicaragua, will be outfitted with new washrooms under the SchoolBOX Tools 4 Schools Program. These washrooms are essential to the day to day operations of these schools. It is a lot easier to study when you have a place to GO..

May 2008 - The Blaney Library Project and the San Santiago School Near Completion

With the help of a devoted and hardworking team from Canada the San Santiago School on Corn Island is close to being completed. An inauguration ceremony and celebration is planned for late June to open the school with the entire community. Only minor touch-ups are needed to finish the library which will make a HUGE impact on the surrounding community as there are no libraries in the area and the children are hungry to read.

May 2008 - Filming the SchoolBOX Video

A talented young filmmaker; Joseph Murray has been documenting the schools, neighbourhoods, families, teachers and children that SchoolBOX has been working with in Nicaragua. The video will be a short promotional film to be put on the SchoolBOX website and sent out to various schools and donors. The video should be ready for audiences in July 2008.

March/April - 2008 Two Groups Visit Nicaragua

In March, a group visited three schools that SchoolBOX is working with in Managua and traveled to Corn Island to participate in the Blaney Library Project/ San Santiago School Build. A second group came in April and toured a number of SchoolBOX partner schools across Nicaragua. Both groups got to experience SchoolBOX's work first hand. We look forward to hosting many groups in the future.

February 2008 - SchoolBOX Board meets in Toronto to map out an aggessive strategy for 2008/9

As a result of several months of careful planning, SchoolBOX establishes an aggressive stratetgy to build 5 schools, help over 5000 students, and expand to include over 30 partner schools.

January 2008 - SchoolBOX announces the expansion of its team in Nicaragua

SchoolBOX is overjoyed to announce that the following individuals will be joining our team in Nicaragua as interns: Dilya Niezova, Nicole Gallo, Sara Kerr, Alexandra Giancar.