It’s About Kids is a California nonprofit corporation with federal 501(c)(3) status that was started in 1997. The organization was established to facilitate support for mission projects from the United States in Ecuador, South America, where we have a sister foundation by the same name. Scroll to see a description of our projects!
In 2006 Montebello Academy, a project of the US and Ecuadorian Foundations It’s About Kids, became legally recognized as a K-12 school in Ecuador reaching enrollment of nearly 700 students supported by a fully employed staff of over 130 persons faithfully committed to serving the mission. To date we have had 12 graduating classes with alumni receiving university scholarships nationally and internationally, representing Montebello on every continent of the planet. The reach of our mission has been from the coast to the cordillera (Andes Mountains) and into the Amazon jungle region of Ecuador. For more about the history of our work in discipleship among marginalized children of this tiny country, as well as our current and future projects, all can be found by following the menus in this site.
At Montebello Academy, we have established a unique methodology, informed by a hybrid application of model pedagogy. This approach integrates the best learning systems globally, adhering to the highest recognized learning standards measured at an international level according to the OECD PISA. These standards align with what industries and professions worldwide are asking university admissions processes to screen for in aiming to equip students for workplace challenges. The Montebello methodology, engineered to assure world-class results for our graduate students, is arguably our most celebrated achievement.
Our kids are not only equipped to thrive globally in profession or career, but they will also carry with them a life-model and confession of faith with a mission formed by Christ to live out His Great Commission: “Go and make disciples of all nations”. At Montebello discipleship is an immersive, hands-on endeavor, refined by taking what is learned in the classroom out into active participation in our institution’s service and mission-oriented initiatives. Our graduates will take with them a Bible–College level understanding of the Gospel message, complete with relevant apologetics, equipping them for living in a challenging world where North is poorly defined on a post-modern world view map.
“It’s About Kids has been invited by key persons from San Cristobal, the capital of the Galapagos Islands archipelago, to establish a school that will offer all the advantages of our Quito campus, Montebello Academy, to an even greater marginalized and isolated segment of Ecuadorian culture.”
Currently, the condition of the education on the islands is one of the worst in a country that is overall at the bottom of the standings internationally. The prospects for an education have been so dismal that many parents have had to come to the sad conclusion of separation from kids as they feel the only solution is send their children to live on the mainland with relatives so that they can learn in better schools…which as stated, are not stellar.
Because the economy of the islands is supported principally by tourism, parents want more than anything else for their children to help with and inherit their family businesses. And because the common language of the tourist visiting the islands is English, what is most needed for strong family economies is that which we are most proficient in providing…mastery of English.
Montebello University is a very significant project launching this year. The objective of the University is very narrow but specific to our mission in that the B.Ed or M.Ed degrees that we will be offering are primarily giving emphasis to our celebrated learning methodology. – resumen
We believe that we currently offer among our own teachers the most intentional pedagogical laboratory we know of operating inside of a school where the best teaching/learning practices anywhere in the world can be learned in hands-on, day-to-day classroom instruction. The outcome that we are hopeful for is to continue the Montebello philosophy of Education and discipleship as far as God provides the opportunity to extend its influence. As are our intentions for the Galapagos Islands project, the same model can be planted in other regions of Ecuador or the world. More than providers of a 21st century education, we are a mission to make disciples of Jesus by training our kids to carry the commission of Christ anywhere on the planet where He may lead. For more on how to join this project, please contact us expandida
This, of course, we are already doing. However, for the full development of the project, with its ability to attract and retain top teaching faculty and the resources to pay for this at an institutional level, we believe that it is essential that we demonstrate our commitment to this pedagogical focus by having a learning center dedicated to that purpose and outcome. Because our current infrastructure is bursting at its seams, the added benefit will not only be the efficacy of a purpose driven learning environment, but the expansion of the project will also facilitate the overall economy of operational processes at our school….we need more space for students.