How It All Started

Hope Bilingual Academy got its start 9 years ago when founder and director Patricia Shronce decided that the act of one person could change the lives of many for years and years to come.

"Who is Patricia?" you may be wondering. Well, she is a native of Nicaragua, who moved with her family to Texas when she was a child. She has one of the most selfless and giving hearts you've ever seen, and that was evidenced with birthing Hope Bilingual Academy into being.

Moving to a new country and having to learn a new language is challenging to say the least, which makes Patricia the perfect, compassionate person to be a principal and teacher at Hope Bilingual with kids encountering new challenges every day.

She has known from an early age what it is to face adversity and yet overcame it in extraordinary ways. This is evidenced from childhood and years beyond, as she adds mother, grandmother, sign language teacher, school psychologist, and speech pathologist to her already impressive position as founder and director of Hope.

Our Mission

Children across the world deserve the opportunity to be educated for a brighter future. It shouldn't matter what country they live in, their economic status, or even their physical and mental abilities; they each deserve a chance at hope and a future. Hope Bilingual Academy exists to establish that hope and equip children with possibilities for success. Scholars not only have their lives changed, but the lives of those around them. Generational walls and expectations of those living in rural Nicaragua (where poverty and illiteracy reign) are completely broken down and replaced with a solid foundation of education built from the ground up.

Our Impact

Over the past 9 years, it has been an amazing journey watching the children grow and mature. Some have gone on to higher education, and many of the graduates have very good jobs to support their families.
Before HBA, kids were conditioned by their culture to settle for unskilled jobs. However, throughout these 9 years, the local culture has been transformed from those limited expectations to having the possibilities of becoming doctors, engineers, missionaries, and anything they can imagine.
It's not that they are just dreaming bigger for their lives, but the children are able to dream for the FIRST TIME. HBA is not only encouraging that, but proving that it's possible through many of their graduates.

Our Programs

When the school started, it was originally founded for gifted students. However, because of the safe environment that the school provides, students with special needs and victims of domestic violence are embraced with open arms too. Behavioral issues are almost non-existent, because these children want to be there and see the opportunity as a privilege, honor, and gift.

Hope Bilingual Academy's programs allow the students to learn God's moral values while they read and write. Comprehensive learning is found by each student in so many different topics throughout their daily activities while they are also learning how to be good citizens, good students, and developing maturity in ethics and values.

Intensive Care Reading/Writing Program (ICU)

Many of the students arrive to HBA from the public school system without the ability to read or write. "We actually teach the children how to read and write their native language first. I say actually teach them how to read and write because most schools don't do that. They are overcrowded, and most of the teachers are not ready to take that challenge " says director Patricia Shronce of their intensive program (ICU) for students that need extra attention to progress to their expected grade level.

Technology & Interactivity

Thanks to the generous donations of computers by sponsors of the program, Hope Bilingual Academy now has the opportunity to diversify the skill set of each student with computer classes. Many of the children at HBA have special needs, and different learning styles; individual interactivity through computers provides audible, visual, and hands-on learning possibilities for all students.

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English & Language Arts

One of the ways that HBA impacts the lives of so many children in this community is by giving them advantages and better opportunities through learning the English language. Most families in these types of areas support themselves with some type of farm work or a machete. Generation after generation the cycle of poverty continues...until now.

Math, Science & Social Studies

The staff at Hope is dedicated to spending more time with students to ensure that they are actually learning and grasping the material rather than just getting through a lesson plan. The students are also excelling in the basic curriculum subjects, such as language arts in Spanish, different types of sciences, social studies, and mathematics. This type of attention on foundational education is yet another reason why HBA is able to benefit the children far greater than what the public school system in the area is capable of doing. Plus, the kids LOVE learning and value the opportunity they've been given.

Extracurricular Activities

Outside of the basic education that is taught in schools throughout Nicaragua, Hope Bilingual sets itself apart from the rest and goes beyond the boundaries of the four walls of a typical classroom. Carpentry, cooking, farming, music (especially when volunteer music teachers come in), gardening, botany, and swimming are all part of the educational experience!