258 million children are out of school today — not for lack of ability, but for lack of a fee, a uniform, or a safe way to get there. Open Doors removes those barriers one student at a time, then stays until they graduate. $42 puts a child back in class for a full term.
In partnership with the institutions that hold us to a higher standard
Tuition is rarely the only thing standing in the way. So we built five programs that tackle the real reasons children drop out — and one that keeps them learning for life.
We cover tuition, exam fees, and uniforms for 14,200 students across 11 countries. Sponsors are matched to one child and receive their report card and a handwritten letter every term.
Where the nearest school is hours away, we build one. 312 classrooms raised so far — solar-lit, weatherproof, and designed alongside the community that runs them.
A child with no textbook falls a full grade behind by year's end. We've placed 1.1 million books and 9,800 e-readers loaded with the local curriculum into students' hands.
A great school is a great teacher. We train and pay 640 local educators a living wage, with mentorship and continuing certification — so classrooms keep their teachers.
Girls are the first pulled out when money runs short. Stipends, safe transport, and mentorship have kept 6,500 girls enrolled through the years they're most likely to leave.
Finishing secondary school is only half the climb. We guide top graduates through applications, scholarships, and their first year — 1,900 first-generation students and counting.
Doors held open since 2009
Not a logo on a banner — a real classroom, a real morning, a real child who showed up because someone, somewhere, decided they should. Here is a week in the field.
Amara, 9, walks into Grade 3 in the first uniform she's ever owned. Her scholarship covers fees, books, and the shoes that let her make the 4 km walk.
A solar-lit, two-room school replaces lessons held under a tarp. 80 children now learn through the monsoon season instead of losing four months a year.
3,000 books arrive in a town that had none. Within a month, reading levels jumped a full grade — and the library stays open every evening.
Fellowship teacher Joseph leads a class of 41. A living wage and certification mean he'll still be here in five years — the single biggest predictor of student success.
Forty girls sit their national leaving exams. The Girls Stay in School stipend carried every one of them through the years they were most likely to drop out.
Esther becomes the first in her family to reach university. Bridge to University walked her through applications, a full scholarship, and her first term away from home.
“I left school at twelve to sell vegetables with my mother. A sponsor I have never met paid my fees for six years. Today I am a nurse, and I sponsor a girl in my old village. The door swings both ways.”
“For nine years I taught in a leaking room with no chalk. Open Doors built us a real school and paid me a wage I can live on. I stopped looking for other work. My students stopped disappearing.”
“I sponsor one student and get her report card every term. Watching her go from struggling in maths to top of her class is the most direct good I have ever done with $42 a month.”
87 cents of every dollar funds programs directly. The remaining 13 cents covers the auditing, field staff, and reporting that keep us accountable. Our financials are independently audited and published in full every year.
Yes. A monthly sponsorship matches you to one student. You'll receive their photo, their report card every term, and a handwritten letter — and you can write back. Sponsorships start at $42 a month.
Open Doors is a registered charity, and gifts are tax-deductible in Canada, the US, and the UK. Your official receipt is emailed the moment your donation clears, with an annual summary each January.
Every quarter we publish enrollment numbers, graduation rates, and spending by country — verified by in-country partners and a third-party auditor. Sponsors also get named updates on the student they support.
Absolutely. We run workplace matching, classroom-to-classroom twinning, and fund-a-school campaigns for teams of any size. Reach out and we'll build a partnership around the impact you care about.
We'll tell you the moment it happens and share where they're headed next. You can then choose to follow them into Bridge to University or be matched with a new student starting their journey.
Become a monthly sponsor and put one child back in class — then watch their report cards arrive for years. Cancel anytime; most never do.