Badi School & University Growth

2007 Progress Update

When the Mona Foundation representatives arrived at Badi School in Panama this August, we learned that the adjacent property recently purchased for the new university and has already been cleared and the new two new classrooms have been recently completed and are in use! It was wonderful to be able to walk next door and see the vision now a partial reality. The drainage system for the new property is being designed and installed as well. The construction of the main buildings of the university will be modeled on the recently completed buildings of the main school, thus saving on engineering and design costs.

The new library now contains 4000 books. The computer lab has 25 stations and has recently been refurbished. The large assembly/meeting room above classrooms now has comfortable chairs, a stage area, great ventilation, good lighting for student performances and a public address system. They are hoping to build the stage this next year.

Construction miracles are not the only ones, academic achievements here are equally impressive. One of the requirements for high school students at Badi School is to go to public schools in teams and work with students in elementary schools, teaching principles of moral development through the arts like drama, painting, and music. This approach has been highly successful and the model has been printed in the newspaper for all teachers in Panama to use with their students. Environmental awareness projects are done by students within the community. One such project resulted in changing all the light bulbs in local homes for donated, lower energy fluorescent ones.

One track of study for the university will be digital communications. This was chosen because it is comparatively less costly to implement. There is a great need in the community for positive programming and the new university sits on a hill, allowing a 15 mile radius of reach.

Winner of international awards, Badi School has earned a national and international reputation for excellence and is a model for other schools to emulate. A lovely dinner with the Torrez family followed our tour and afterward we were each presented with a rose and gifts from a graduate, Jessica Mizrachi. Jessica is now an accomplished artist and is the youngest member of the National Academy of Artists, with several shows of her own to her credit. She had painted lovely scenes from Panama for each one of the Mona group. Jessica came to Badi as a restless, discontented teenager. Under the direction of Oscar Torrez, Jessica says she learned artistic background to develop her own latent skills but that she also learned patience, humility and virtues to improve herself. She graduated from Badi with a full scholarship for the University of Panama and she's now studying to be an architect. Jessica is a perfect reminder of what happens when opportunity is given to learn and flourish.

2007 Construction and Land Preparation Begin

Soil study and land preparation are underway on the new land to level the property before construction. Three new classrooms are being added to the original building. The floor and steps are underway.

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2006 Mona Foundation Visitors Celebrate New Land Purchased for University

Mona Foundation had provided the school with $30,000 to purchase the land across from the school for the development plan of the University. As our Mona Foundation representatives met with the Torrez family on the recent trip to Panama, they learned that a much larger and better parcel of land exactly next to the school had become available at a very good price; the owner’s father had bequeathed it for a “good cause.” Mr. Torrez had calculated the cost of this land in comparison to the anticipated income of the schools, to assure they could afford the land, and went to the bank to borrow the remaining $20,000 to make the whole purchase of the larger land possible. This land will allow the school to grow in the next few years without running out of space again! Based on the Development Plan, the next steps are to build additional classrooms before December. With 2000 students on the waiting list, they will then proceed to build the “Dream University,” anticipating completion within two years.

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2006 Moral Leadership Achievements Celebrated

The Torrez family, directors of the Badi School in Panama, recently signed an agreement with the Ministry of Education so that their Moral Leadership curriculum could be disseminated and shared with all the schools in the area. Badi School was also recognized as one of the “Best Schools” in South and Central America, and will be recognized with an award in a special ceremony in Brazil. This is quite an honor.

Our group of Mona visitors was serenaded by the school string orchestra and then four recorder players.

We also viewed an art show by Jessica Mizrachi, a 17-year old graduate, the youngest member of the Panamanian Art Society, followed by a special dinner party. When asked how she started to paint, Jessica shared that she was not very happy when she came to Badi School, restless, discontent, impatient. Mr. Torrez encouraged her to paint and mentored her to where she is right now.

Mr. Torrez explained, “The best way to teach ‘patience’ as an attribute and a virtue is encourage them to paint because they will need to be patient if they want to be good at painting.” (Not to preach the virtue, but help them to become it through the creative experience.) Then you also play beautiful music while they are painting, and that helps them become accustomed to great music which in turn helps them to learn better. “And that is our virtues program,” he said, “teaching students to be the best they can by doing.”

2006 New Auditorium
and New Classrooms Begun

Badi School is currently in the process of completing their new auditorium which will open in November with a drama presentation called “Universal Peace.” Funding has also been contributed for the construction of three new classrooms by a very generous family. Work is underway on the classes and finishing on the auditorium.

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