QUINTA LOS CHAVALOS…
where “learning is a beautiful thing”

Down a dusty dirt road, deep in Barrio Miralago, one can hear some happy voices and find amazing growth. The bright blue gate and a welcoming “Quinta Los Chavalos” sign says that you have reached a special place for many of the barrio’s children, where, as one young student tells us, “learning is a beautiful thing.”

Quinta Los Chavalos is both an ancillary school to public education and a home for young boys from nearby towns. Three educators and rotating volunteers make La Quinta one of Granada’s most innovative educational programs. It tackles the ever-present problem of illiteracy and moves beyond it into the realm of computer training, science, and higher math for those who are ready to accept the challenge.

More than fifty barrio children attend La Quinta throughout the day for homework tutoring, extra reading and math classes, music and art activities, computer training, and sports. The resident boys, many the victims of neglect or violence in their family lives, have found refuge in La Quinta where they are assured of safety, an education, and challenge.  For them we are the alternative to domestic abuse or to life on the streets, where many Nicaraguan children become glue-addicted and estranged from their families.

Piano concerts, art shows, piñata making, and museum trips help round out our young students, taking them to new horizons in preparation for life beyond the barrio.

La Quinta also serves as a hub for international volunteers whose talents and expertise open a wider, more exciting world for children who have never ventured beyond the barrio limits.