Our History | Our Mission and Vision

Our History

"The team decided that something needed to be done"
In 1997, a group of leading architects traveled to Honduras. They brought with them an interest in exploring the state of school facilities in the beautiful landscape that surrounded the town of Santa Cruz. What they found was a series of communities in need of adequate schools for their children. Many of the one and two classroom schools throughout the country were in dire need of repairs or replacement. Some were constructed of wood, sticks, and mud. Some had no windows and leaking roofs. Dirt floors and lack of teaching materials were common.

The team decided that something needed to be done. They returned to North America, recruited additional planners, architects, engineers, and constructors, and then formed Schools for Children of the World (SCW) under the leadership of Bill De Jong, Chuck Newman, and Ron McKnight.

SCW then partnered with the Honduran government and undertook a comprehensive assessment of every school in the country. A Master Plan was developed. SCW intended to build a series of Demonstration Schools that would both address immediate educational needs and provide the Honduran people with the experience, knowledge, skills, supports, and examples they needed to fulfill the Master Plan thus improving the quality of education in the country. Since 1998, SCW has maintained its commitment to this project and built several Demonstration Schools and renovated several more.

Additionally, SCW has worked in South America, Africa, and North America and has built or renovated more than 75 schools between the four regions.

In 2005, SCW Canada (SCW.CA) was officially established as a registered charitable
organization under the leadership of Doug Allen, Ron McKnight, and Annette MacDonald. A diverse board was formed that balanced experience in the construction community with experience in the charitable governance community. SCW.CA immediately began supporting the Master Plan in Honduras while also exploring ways in which it could lead distinctly Canadian projects.

	Our Mission and Vision
	empower children in developing countries The mission of SCW.CA is to empower children in developing countries through the provision of a better educational system. We see ourselves fulfilling this mission by providing children with a safe, sustainable, and sound learning environment. We pride ourselves on: • Our wealth of knowledge and experience in the area school construction • Our grassroots collaborative methodology of school construction, and • Our total dependence of volunteerism and the good will of our supporters