School of Hope

In the vast expanse of desert East of Atlas Mountains in Morocco seasonal rain and snow once supported livestock but now the drought seems to never end Hardly a blade of grass can be seen and families travel miles on foot to get water from a muddy hole in the ground Yet the children willingly ride donkeys and bicycles or walk for miles across rocks to a school of hope built of clay Following both the students and the teachers in the Oulad Boukais Tribes community school for over three years SCHOOL OF HOPE shows students Mohamed Miloud Fatima and their classmates responding with childish glee to the schools altruistic young teacher Mohamed Each child faces individual obstacles supporting their aging parents avoiding restrictions from relatives based on traditional gender roles while their young teacher makes do in a house with no electricity or water