Peace Project
Written by Jessie Heath | 
The Davis Projects for Peace is a yearly opportunity for college students to involve themselves in peaceful, world-changing projects. Each year at Methodist, students from different backgrounds and upbringings submit project blueprints to be judged by the Davis United World College Scholars Program. In the summer of 2010, the top 100 student-led project proposals from more than 90 American College Campuses will be selected to put their plans into action.
This year at Methodist, Camilo Rubiano Gomez and Fredy Oxom were chosen as Methodist University’s primary candidates to receive funding their project, Build to Educate.
Rubiano and Oxom’s objective is to promote the education of the Q’eqchi community in Coban, Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. Their goal is to construct a secondary school for the indigenous communities in the area.
Rubiano and Oxom were very clear that the objective for their project is more than construction. In the proposal they submitted to the Davis Projects for Peace, they noted that the project was just also about promoting political participation, cultural appreciation and gender equality.
The indigenous people are often discriminated against by both the Guatemalan government and the non-indigenous community because of a lack of resources, and the conditions in which they live. Since the indigenous people do not receive educational support from the government, they do not have a permanent building to learn in, and secondary education is not taken seriously. There are currently 45 students from different villages studying in a village called Peña Blanca. These students study in community buildings because there are no classrooms for them to use.
Rubiano and Oxom have proposed to promote peace in the community by raising socio-cultural awareness of the indigenous cultures.
“Education is the medium for the social participation of the indigenous in Guatemala,” they said in their proposal. “This project will raise awareness of the socio-cultural recognition of the indigenous cultures. The indigenous voice shouts, crying for peace and equality in the Guatemalan society.”
When asked how they feel about being chosen to represent Methodist, both say they are excited to learn whether or not they will receive funding from the Davis Projects for Peace committee.
“We will be excited to work on this project, but it’s not about what we feel,” said Rubiano. “This project is for the community, not us.”
Oxom and Rubiano’s project still has to be evaluated by the United World College committee and they should know by March 15 whether their project has been chosen for funding or not.
Each selected Project for Peace is given a $10,000 budget to implement ideas into action. All undergraduate students at Methodist University were eligible to submit peace proposals. After submission, a campus committee evaluates the proposals and selects the top two for further judgment. These two project proposals will be evaluated by the United World College committee, who will decide whether or not the projects are credible enough to be awarded the grand money.
The aim of Projects for Peace is to provide each involved school with at least one funded project. Therefore, all involved schools are encouraged to select two projects, a main project and a secondary one for funding.
This year, Methodist’s secondary project was submitted by Rodney Machokoto and Kurt Lavarello. They have proposed renovations to a school for the deaf in Zimbabwe.
This year at Methodist, Camilo Rubiano Gomez and Fredy Oxom were chosen as Methodist University’s primary candidates to receive funding their project, Build to Educate.
Rubiano and Oxom’s objective is to promote the education of the Q’eqchi community in Coban, Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. Their goal is to construct a secondary school for the indigenous communities in the area.
Rubiano and Oxom were very clear that the objective for their project is more than construction. In the proposal they submitted to the Davis Projects for Peace, they noted that the project was just also about promoting political participation, cultural appreciation and gender equality.
The indigenous people are often discriminated against by both the Guatemalan government and the non-indigenous community because of a lack of resources, and the conditions in which they live. Since the indigenous people do not receive educational support from the government, they do not have a permanent building to learn in, and secondary education is not taken seriously. There are currently 45 students from different villages studying in a village called Peña Blanca. These students study in community buildings because there are no classrooms for them to use.
Rubiano and Oxom have proposed to promote peace in the community by raising socio-cultural awareness of the indigenous cultures.
“Education is the medium for the social participation of the indigenous in Guatemala,” they said in their proposal. “This project will raise awareness of the socio-cultural recognition of the indigenous cultures. The indigenous voice shouts, crying for peace and equality in the Guatemalan society.”
When asked how they feel about being chosen to represent Methodist, both say they are excited to learn whether or not they will receive funding from the Davis Projects for Peace committee.
“We will be excited to work on this project, but it’s not about what we feel,” said Rubiano. “This project is for the community, not us.”
Oxom and Rubiano’s project still has to be evaluated by the United World College committee and they should know by March 15 whether their project has been chosen for funding or not.
Each selected Project for Peace is given a $10,000 budget to implement ideas into action. All undergraduate students at Methodist University were eligible to submit peace proposals. After submission, a campus committee evaluates the proposals and selects the top two for further judgment. These two project proposals will be evaluated by the United World College committee, who will decide whether or not the projects are credible enough to be awarded the grand money.
The aim of Projects for Peace is to provide each involved school with at least one funded project. Therefore, all involved schools are encouraged to select two projects, a main project and a secondary one for funding.
This year, Methodist’s secondary project was submitted by Rodney Machokoto and Kurt Lavarello. They have proposed renovations to a school for the deaf in Zimbabwe.
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