Programs

Answers to multiple urgencies in diverse contexts.

Gradually, in its search for efficacious ways to respond to the multiple demands of students and communities, Fe y Alegria has produced, in accord with the reality of different countries, a wide variety of actions oriented towards integral popular education and social development. Presently it runs the following programs with the support of civil society and government authorities:

Formal School Education

Networks of schools with formal programs of pre-school, primary education, secondary education, and technical education. There is a major emphasis on agricultural, commercial, and industrial specializations, as well as other courses geared to professional training. The main work is in poor city slums, rural areas and Native American zones (in some countries there is bilingual intercultural education).
University education programs contribute to the formation of technicians specializing in industry, computation and administration.

Radio Education (Formal and Non-Formal)

Fe y Alegria sponsors radio education institutes with networks of radio stations dedicated to transmitting programs for literacy training, formal primary and secondary schooling for adults, and technical training. These programs involve a network of volunteer instructors who accompany the students on a weekly basis.
Special radio programs are geared to training in citizenship and in human and Christian values.

Specialized Education (Alternative, Non-Formal)

There are literacy programs in Spanish, and in some countries a bilingual, intercultural focus.
In some countries there are programs of special education for handicapped children and young people, sometimes as a type of formal education, sometimes as a complement to regular schooling.
Fe y Alegria puts much emphasis on teacher training, both initial and advanced. It seeks a continual perfecting of the teachers` sense of service and mission.
There are programs and activities which complement formal education for children, young people and adults. These include: special tutoring in schools, attention to children and adolescents who live on the streets, residences and homes for school-age children, prevention and education in regard to drug addiction, clubs and camping groups geared to cultural and recreational ends, schools for parents, formation of leaders and community organizers, defense of human rights, education for international solidarity, etc.
Fe y Alegria also has programs which train young people for work. These programs are directed both to students in the regular schools and to young people who are not in the school system, as well as to adults. The programs have a variety of methods and modalities, including specialized centers, workshops in the schools, workshops which move from place to place, etc.

Services of Formation, Assistance and Community Development

Fe y Alegria promotes programs which attend to basic needs in the areas of health and nutrition.
Community centers, cooperatives (consumer, savings, production), small businesses and associations for the organization and development of poor communities in rural, country and indigenous zones.
In addition, It also attends to the needs of human development and Christian formation by means of meetings, workshops, retreats, etc.
Fe y Alegria also develops a variety of publications and creates educational materials in Spanish and in native languages for educators, promoters, communities and students. Such materials are oriented towards improving the quality of both the processes and the results of the educational system.