Founded in 2004, BECA (which means "scholarship" in Spanish) is a registered 501(c)(3) that pays college tuition for Bolivian students from low-income families (less than $300 per month). BECA is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah and its president and founder is Barbara Pence.
The first bachelor degree graduate, Alexander Mustacedo, completed his 6-year program in Information Systems in September of 2010. As of 2012 there are five graduates (licenciados) from BECA. Another three will graduate in 2013 and another 4 between 2014 and 2015.
Students have studied Medicine, International Relations, Human Resources, Marketing, Petroleum Engineering, Financial Accounting, and a variety of other majors. BECA cooperates with high-quality local (Bolivian) universities to guarantee that students remain in their home country to contribute to their families and Bolivia and allows students to select the major of their choice.
BECA students are guided by local counselors and provided with job placement assistance.
A local (Bolivian) BECA Board of Directors, headed by Ms. Monina Kellembergher and U.S. officers are non-paid; thus 100% of funds raised are directed to tuition and books for selected students, who must maintain a 70% average to remain eligible for continued support.
The 2010 visit to Bolivia celebrated our first graduates, planned for the new intakes in 2011, and allowed UTEPSA university to give each student a gift. In spite of the recession, BECA reconfirmed our mission and commitment to Bolivia. .
