Our Affiliated Site: Pueblo Pintado Boarding School in Cuba, New Mexico

facts about Pueblo Pintado Boarding School:

  • Grades served: Kindergarten – eighth grade
  • Facility Description: A new school facility was built for the 2010-2011 school year.
  • Education: Curriculum parallels the New Mexico state education standards. In addition to core academic subjects, the Navajo language, history, and culture are taught.
  • Nutrition: Nutritious meals are served each day.
  • Health: Students’ health is closely monitored, and medical care is provided as needed.
  • Extracurricular Activities: Include scouting, sports, games, powwows, and yearly Navajo dances
  • Basic Needs: As with all of our affiliated sites, our volunteer coordinators determine the individual needs of each sponsored child, and those basic needs are provided to them on a regular basis. Items include but are not limited to clothing, shoes, bedding for the home, hygiene items, medications, eyeglasses, and school supplies — all which help them overcome the barriers they face coming from impoverished households.

Located in a remote area of  north-central New Mexico’s “Navajo Country,” the Pueblo Pintado Boarding School lies outside of the vast Navajo Indian Reservation, about 15 miles southeast of the Chaco Canyon National Monument. The school is in such an isolated area, in fact, that the nearest town — Cuba, New Mexico — is 55 miles away. The Navajos who live in this remote setting are characterized by two traits –  strict adherence to the customs and culture of their ancestors, and a quiet acceptance of the abject poverty in which they live.

Despite its incredible desert beauty and rich cultural history, this region is essentially devoid of employment opportunities, and the resulting poverty carries debilitating socioeconomic problems. For this reason, the Pueblo Pintado Boarding School serves as a beacon of hope, where children receive nutritious meals, encouragement, and a quality education — the key to breaking the cycle of poverty so that students may rise above the difficult economic circumstances from which they come.