Teaching and learning in Ecuador
By Ted Nesi '07
Lots of couples stay together after they graduate from Wheaton, but Erin Duffy '05 and Taylor Jackson '06 stand out. Since last September, the pair of star scholar-athletes--Duffy in soccer, Jackson in lacross--have been volunteering at a primary school in Tonsupa, a tiny fishing village on Ecuador's northern coast.
During the winter months, heavy rains drench Tonsupa and other Ecuadorian towns that border the Pacific Ocean, forcing schools to close from mid-January to April. To fill the gap during those months, Duffy and Jackson created a daily program at the school offering the village children English, geography, art, music and sports.
The program was "a huge success," Duffy says, attracting about 45 children each day. "Our main goal in running this vacation school was to give local children a place to be children during the winter months instead of getting a job, working at home, or getting into trouble," she explains. "The children we have come into contact with are amazing."
It hasn't all been perfect, of course. The pair said they were shocked by the rampant corruption in the region and dismayed by the abject poverty in which so many live. Most people earn only $10 to $15 a day.
Living in Ecuador has also taken some getting used to. The temperature hits between 80 and 95 degrees year-round. Their school has bamboo walls, a tin roof, a dirt floor and an outhouse for a bathroom. Still, Duffy and Jackson agree that their nine-month sojourn has been an excellent post-graduate experience. "Not only did our Wheaton education prepare us for this, but it led us to it," says Jackson, who credits the college's language requirement with convincing both to continue studying Spanish after high school and, eventually, to become Hispanic studies majors.
They discovered the Tonsupa program, which is run by the Boston-based non-profit group United Planet, during Jackson's senior year. They were researching volunteer opportunities in developing countries with help from the Filene Center for Work and Learning.
"Being Wheaton graduates, we both know that we are very fortunate young people," Jackson says. "Basically, we have what many people in the world don't. After a great four-year experience, Erin and I decided that it was our obligation to help less fortunate people."
They have certainly made an impact on the children of Tonsupa. "Nearly every morning when we arrive at school," Duffy says, "some of the students come and greet us at the main road, while others wait at the building with big smiles and excitement in their eyes."
Right now Duffy and Jackson are uncertain about what they want to do next, although both hope to continue working with children. But they agree that the experience has "both challenged and strengthened our relationship," Jackson says. "We've learned to respect each other's space more, since we spend pretty much every second side by side."
