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Established in 1937, the not-for-profit Jardín Infantil Obrero (JIO) is a day care center for children 2.5 to 6 years old of low socio-economic backgrounds. The school seeks to provide its 120 children with a solid moral and intellectual foundation upon which they can develop to become upstanding citizens, who value family and society.

The children, most of whom live in the surrounding area of La Perseverancia, one of Bogotá’s poorest neighborhoods, come from dual-income families earning below US$220 per month. Many of them have been displaced by the violence in Colombia’s countryside and settled in shantytowns throughout the city, such as the one neighboring the center.

The children attend the day care center in the mornings, while both of their parents are at work (enrollment at the center is open only to children whose parents must be absent from the home due to work requirements and who otherwise would be left unsupervised). In addition to a Montessori education, the children receive psychological and medical attention, nutritional meals and engage in recreational activities. The day care center is funded through the minimal tuition fees paid by the students’ families, government support, and mostly, private donations.

A recurring grant by the Genesis Foundation distributed subject to meeting budgets and goals under supervision of Fundación Inés Elvira, ensures the long-term sustainability of JIO.

For more information about this institution, or to make a direct contribution, please contact genesis@genesis-foundation.org.