124 Million Children and Teens Around the World Are Not In School

War, natural disaster, illness and poverty keep children from learning everyday. One in four young people living in poor countries is unable to read a single sentence. But with your help, we can break this cycle of poverty and illiteracy: $1 invested in education and skills = $10 in economic growth. What a return on investment!

Your donations to IOCC improve the general welfare of children now and into their adulthood. Your support gives them the knowledge to protect themselves from disease, be more productive in society and go on to raise children who also attend school.

Global Outreach – Where You’re Helping Children Learn

Syria

Before civil war broke out in 2011, nearly every child was enrolled in primary school. By 2013, about 1.8 million Syrian children were out of school. One in four schools have been damaged, destroyed or occupied as shelter by families who lost their homes. Thanks to donors like you, IOCC has been in Syria working to preserve education for children—providing school uniforms and rehabilitating damaged schools. School kits packed with notebooks, pencils and other supplies have also been distributed to more than 40,000 Syrian children.

Balkans

In May 2014, Bosnia and Serbia experienced the worst floods in 120 years. Many schools shut down because of the destruction. Desks, books, computers and lab equipment were swept away or buried in mud. Your gifts helped IOCC replace the roof and heating system for the only primary school in the Serbian village of Tekija, provide new furniture and computers for primary students in Šamac, Bosnia, and give nearby Nikola Tesla High School’s future pharmacists and chemists a newly equipped chemistry lab.

More than 30,000 children also received school kits to replace supplies lost in the floods.

Lebanon

The influx of Syrian refugee children into Lebanon has severely strained the country’s ability to educate so many new students in its existing schools. IOCC is rehabilitating 110 public schools in disrepair to improve the learning environment for the local children and their Syrian classmates. Plumbing, electrical systems and playgrounds are being upgraded to meet safety standards, while classrooms are getting new paint, windows and doors. IOCC is also providing tuition support for Assyrian refugee children driven from their homes in a raid of minority Christian villages in northern Syria.

Uganda

The country’s AIDS pandemic compounded by two decades of civil war and economic upheaval have left an entire generation of children orphaned and uneducated. Donors like you – along with support from St. Nektarios Education Fund – are why nearly 1,000 students have brighter futures. You helped IOCC build three new schools to give Uganda’s youth better access to an education — gaining the knowledge and skills needed to face the challenges of adulthood.

United States of America

Children living in poverty seldom have the benefit of books to read at home so they’re behind many of their classmates. Most never catch up. Thanks to your support, IOCC has provided more than 900,000 new elementary and secondary textbooks worth $40 million to after school, tutoring and Head Start programs. The books have been given to children in underserved areas of more than 20 states.
Read more about how you’re also helping schoolchildren in The Holy Land and Jordan.

Assemble a School Kit

One of the many ways you can help IOCC help children learn is by assembling school kits. These inexpensive kits contain necessary school supplies that go a long way in helping children in need in the US and around the world. Assembling kits is a fun and rewarding project for both individuals and parishes. Assemble a kit today!

 

 

IOCC is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization, FEIN: 25-1679348