As a teenager, Arnold left his home in Ormoc City in Leyte to study in Rizal Province.
Throughout high school, his older brother sponsored his education. “I’m proud of my big brother,” Arnold said in Bisaya. “He works in a hair salon and supports me.”
Arnold’s big brother also pledged to pay for his Information Technology course in college.
After one year, however, he had to drop out. His father got very sick and he had to return home to look after him.
In the Philippines, around 4 million Filipinos ages 6 to 24 are out of school.
In short, 1 in every 10 Filipino children and youth are not studying, 2013 government data showed.
For a while, Arnold was lost. He called himself a bum and accepted it. But one day, the 21-year-old pushed himself out their hut. He was determined to return to school.
He succeeded.
Scholar
Arnold received a scholarship to study Technical-Vocational courses through Save the Children’s Pro-Child program,
Scholars like Arnold receive allowances to cover their dormitory, transportation, studies, and daily expenses.
At the end of the course and an internship, they are assisted on finding jobs through our partner organizations.
The Pro-Child program covers out-of-school youth ages 15 to 18. Aside from Tech-Voc courses, it also allows former drop-outs to finish their schooling through an Alternative Learning System.
With your support, we can give more teenagers like Arnold a second shot at life.