FAQ: Grom After-School Surf

1. What are the immediate needs for this project to succeed?…
L- $20,000 for 2 years of wages for our surf coordinators in the different program locations. Running these programs is nearly a full-time job and we’d like to be competitive with local wages so our programs can continue. The surf coordinators are local surfers who have a vested interest in nurturing their communities.

2. “how is surfing integral to educating these kids on Siargao?”
V- Everyone who lives in Siargao knows that people from all over the world come there to surf but most residents don’t have access to surfboards (no surfboards are made there) and most have never surfed at all.  All the kids who are part of the Balikbayod program are required to be currently attending school or in ALS (Alternative Learning System), otherwise they can’t be part of the program and they can’t borrow Balikbayod’s boards.  It’s a very effective incentive for kids to stay in school or go back to school.   After talking to teachers in the local schools there, we found that if kids are given boards to keep (usually from visiting surf tourists who leave boards there), the kids would go surfing instead of going to school.  Some hope to win big tournament money (in American dollars) at surf contests so see surfing as a possible career.   We aim to provide a reward for kids to stay in school.  The local teachers support our program because of these parameters.  We also emphasize to the kids that the boards we collect here in the US are donated by people who are not professional surfers, they are people who love to surf but they support their passion for the sport by going to school and then getting good jobs.

3. “how is your project tied into the existing educational infrastructure on Siargao?”…how much does the philippine government participate?
V – Our partner in Siargao ‘the surfboard librarian” checks with local teachers that the kids are presently in school or ALS.  The local government officials verbally support our program but we don’t receive any funding from government.

4. “how are the donations from the U.S. accounted for in this project?”
V – Funds are accounted for through the SFFCC (San Francisco Filipino Cultural Center), they are our non-profit 501-3c fiscal sponsor in the United States.

5. “is there a strict regimen for the kids, e.g., do they have to attend so many hours of school to surf?…how does the project balance classroom with surf time?
V – 1) Kids only need to be in school or ALS.
2) We purposely made this an after-school program, boards can only be borrowed after school hours, school holidays, and on weekends.

6. Since the  project has been in the works since 2008, what is the success rate for students who have been part of your project?
V – We’ve made three trips, first bringing 4 boards and then 9, and made our first overseas shipment of 40 more in 2011.  The first group of kids had 10 of students participating and after the second trip, this increased by 20.  (This was done solely by personal funds by the founders.) Since starting our program we’ve had 3 high school drop outs return to school to get their diplomas through the ALS, Alternative Learning System and started a 2nd program in the north of the island in Burgos.

7. What coordination is there between the teachers involved in this project and the philippine education authority?…does the government acknowledge this project?
L – 1) The Alternative Learning System is funded by the Philippines government and is a fairly new program aimed to provide education outside of the classroom to those who have dropped out of school.
2) When the ALS heard of our program, they immediately wanted to collaborate with us.
3) In early 2012, ALS working together with Balikbayod received runner up for the best ALS program award in the Philippines.

8. What are the realistic goals for this project? Do you see future support from the Philippine government? or does will this project rely on private backing?
V – 1)  We want to become a registered NGO (Non Government Organization) in the Philippines so we can avoid taxes at customs.  We hope supporters will come with us to the Philippines to meet with the kids and come surf with them.
2) No, we don’t see future support from the Philippine Government.
3) Yes, this project relies on private backing.

9. If this project succeeds to projection, what is the future expansion for it? within the Philippines? Asia? other countries?
V -  We want to increase the number of boards shipped each year and send a shipment at least once a year.  We’d like to employ a resident to run our program (this is currently a volunteer position) and pay them to teach the kids surfing and also maintain boards. Our long term goal is to buy a property that will be an after school center with computer equipment (a teacher request) for kids including tutoring.  It would be a home base for our collection of surfboards with a paid on-site “surfboard librarian” where boards can be repaired and stored.
L- 4) In 2013, we are scheduled to open a new program in Sorsogon, Bicol in the north of the Philippines. We are actively scouting new locations where the local communities are interested in supporting this project. Beyond Philippines, we would like to expand in other countries.