It all started with a dozen children
Redeemer of the World Trilingüal Lutheran School was established in 1991 as a Pre-Kindergarten in the Kaqchikel Maya village of Santiago Zamora. Redentor opened its doors with twelve young students and one teacher. Eleven students completed the year. At the time, the village's public school offered only grades 1-4. Conditions at the public school were difficul
t: two grades to a classroom, thirty or more students in each room, and no books and few basic teaching materials. Added to that, students often brought younger siblings with them, making for a chaotic atmosphere. With the encouragement of the local educational department, Redentor del Mundo added Kindergarten, 1st, 5th, and 6th grades the following year and later added the remaining grades. In 1993, Redentor graduated its first students, including the first girl ever to achieve a sixth grade education in the village's 450+ year history. On October 27, 2000, the tenth academic year closed with the graduation of seven students, including those of the original Pre-Kindergarten class. Enrollment continued to grow until there were over 60 students in Pre-Kindergarten through grade six. The long-held, nearly improbable dream of a Básico, or middle school, became reality when seventeen students enrolled in the first level in January 2001. Since then, a grade was added each year until the complete section of Básico I, II, & III was in place. By January 2003, the student population had grown to over 90 students, including thirty in Básico. Three full-time teachers, part time music, English, and Cakchiquel teachers, and a cook serve the elementary section which meets in the mornings. The Básico section meets in the late afternoons and is taught by a number of teachers. Meanwhile, the public school also has enjoyed a renewed enthusiasm. After years of sagging numbers and a high drop-out rate, it has doubled its enrollment in recent years. From operating a two-room school of about forty students in grades 1-4, the public school now has an enrollment more than 80 in Kindergarten through 6th grade.