We, or B.E.C.A.  refers to Bolivian Education Collaborators of America,a     501(c)(3) non-profit organization which was founded in 2006. (B.E.C.A.  means scholarship in Spanish.)

  About B.E.C.A.  B.E.C.A. is a U.S. managed non-profit charity directing the pooled money of private U.S. citizen donors.

  The current President of B.E.C.A. is Bárbara Pence of Salt Lake City, USA

  The current Treasurer of B.E.C.A. is Dr. Harold Koch, Associate Professor of Business Administration – University of Utah, USA

  The recipients of the scholarshipsare deserving public high school students with income levels that would prohibit university education (less than $300 per month household income).

	Welcome
	History B.E.C.A. was co-founded in 2006 by a Professor of Business Administration at the University of Utah and his wife, ]Barbara Pence, an artist and former executive vice president for a major midwestern bank.  They lived more than eleven years in Spanish-speaking countries.  Harold Koch previously was Professor of the Catholic University in Bolivia which, in  collaboration with the Institute of International Development of  Harvard University, offered three  Masters Degrees of Business and Public Administration. B.E.C.A. is required by U.S. law to report operations and financial management to the U.S. IRS given its non-profit organization status. Objective                  B.E.C.A.'s social objective is to give low-income Bolivian young men and women graduating from public high schools an opportunity for a univeristy education that would otherwise not be possible.  Bolivia, the second poorest nation in the hemisphere where 70% of citizens live beneath the poverty level, needs a more equitable distribution of income and better educated citizens to ensure economic growth and social justice.  It is also B.E.C.A.'s goal to encourage Bolivian college graduates to stay and work in their own country, a goal which is facilitated by their attendance at a local university rather than a foreign one. B.E.C.A. is organized exclusively for charitable and educational purposes under section 501(c)(3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code or corresponding section of any future federal tax code. Principal strategy To achieve this objective, B.E.C.A. receives American citizens' private donations to subsidize the university education for low-income Bolivian young men and women graduating from public high schools.  B.E.C.A. cooperates with a local university partner, UTEPSA (Universidad Technológica Privada de Santa Cruz) which has contractually agreed to subsidize 50% of approved student candidates' education costs.  B.E.C.A. provides the remaining 50% and expects to invest 97% of its funds to achieve this strategy. In selecting candidates for these subsidized scholarships, B.E.C.A. will utilize a non-paid local (Bolivian) board of advisors composed of an ex officio members from the UTEPSA university, a Vice President of a major Santa Cruz, Bolivia bank, and two prominent local citizens and members of the business community.  B.E.C.A. managers located in Salt Lake City, Utah will supervise the organization and help select students from a competitive pool of nominated candidates to allocate donor funds.  Academic promise at the secondary level, recommendations from counselors and sponsors, personal interviews with family members, and other qualifying methods will decide the selection of candidates.  We consider the contributors to B.E.C.A. to be investors in the future and well-being of Bolivian students, their families and the Bolivian nation.  A contribution to B.E.C.A. will not provide a financial return to any individual donor beyond the tax deduction benefit feature of the organization under the U.S. tax code.

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Copyright ©2006 Alexander Mustacedo Quinteros