Students scramble to get to school without getting shot in Colombia's second-largest city

[Judi Lynn]

Students scramble to get to school without getting shot in Colombia's second-largest city
By John Otis

MEDELLIN, Colombia — On a Monday morning, a scrum of students loiter on a Medellin street corner. They're not truants. They’re simply trying to get to school without getting shot.

These kids are waiting for an escort to lead them on a 10-block journey through gang-controlled territory in one of Medellin's toughest neighborhoods. A few minutes later, their chaperon shows up.

"A lot of kids don’t go to class because they’re scared," said Sandra Torres, who is part of a team of escorts hired by the city to boost school attendance. “With us, they feel safer.”

Across Latin America, many students drop out to take jobs and support their impoverished families. But here in Comuna 13, a sprawling mountainside slum that's home to dozens of gangs, kids are leaving in droves because it’s too dangerous to walk to class.

More:
http://www.minnpost.com/globalpost/2010/10/13/22278/students_scramble_to_get_to_school_without_getting_shot_in_colombias_second-largest_city