COVID19 and Badi School, Panama

Badi School started in 1993 as a kindergarten in the carport of a trailer home in Panama. The school is now a K-12 school serving 450 students, of whom 57% are girls. Badi is recognized for excellence in academics, arts, music and technology programs impacting the lives of thousands in the neighboring communities.

COVID-19 has brought with it unparalleled challenges to schools striving to provide access to safe, high quality education. Out of 2,000 private schools in Panama, Badi School is one of about 120 that have been able to successfully transition to online teaching. They have faced several technological and economic challenges, which they are solving step by step.

Some upcoming challenges:

• Suspension of tuition payments due to parents with financial deficiencies
• New requirements from the Ministry of Education
• Lack of funds to cover teacher salaries
• Lack of human resources to take on new challenges
• Reopening logistics for 2021
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Unexpected needs:

• Zoom is the platform best known by the students, the payment for this service is around $400 USD a month
• Need to provide additional Partial Scholarships (increase from 15 currently to 50 in total)
• Digitizing several books that the school has published in order to offer them for free ($2,400)
• Create a new database system for grades ($3,000)