About Us
GuateMaya Alliance is a nonprofit organization with over 25 years of experience empowering Mayan youth in rural Guatemala through education. Formerly known as the Ixtatán Foundation, we operate in the department of Huehuetenango, one of the most underserved regions in the country.
Indigenous youth in Guatemala face a system that excludes them; taught in a foreign language, with little or no access to middle or high schools. Many face the impossible choice of staying home without opportunities or making the dangerous journey north. We exist to change that.
Our mission is to support the power and capacity of Guatemalan youth to foster participatory pathways to community well-being. We dream of thriving communities with access to quality education, justice, health care, and decent employment.
Our History
25 years of impact in rural Guatemala
Centro Uno School
Thanks to a matching grant, the first three classrooms of the Centro Uno School in Guatemala were fully funded. This is a milestone of several years in the making. Centro Uno is located in the Ixcan area. If you have ever visited us in San Mateo, add another 8-hour trip to that.
Rebranded as GuateMaya Alliance
Ixtatan Foundation Inc adopted the DBA of GuateMaya Alliance. This better reflects the expansion of its programs and alliances in the United States and Guatemala. Today, the GuateMaya Alliance is the main partner of the US Embassy in the Western Highlands of Guatemala in implementing English programs.
First College Graduates
San Mateo Ixtatán celebrates its first generation of college graduates, all of Mayan descent, many of whom return as teachers, nurses, midwives, and doctors in their own communities.Headquartered in Guatemala
GuateMaya officially establishes legal operations in Guatemala, enabling a full binational model with fundraising in the U.S. and program execution on the ground.
Two school infrastructures in San Mateo
We began building school infrastructure in San Mateo Ixtatán, Huehuetenango, schools that eventually became owned and run by a community board of education. Today, the Instituto por Cooperativa San Mateo and The Yinhatil Nab'en (Seeds of Wisdom) school are operated and funded independently from the foundation.Founded in Virginia
Ixtatan Foundation is incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in the state of Virginia, shortly after the Guatemala Peace Accords, with a mission to improve education in indigenous communities.