The idea was dismissed as crazy by 99 percent of the people I shared it with, recalls Baggio. Eventually, through sheer persistence, Baggio found a Catholic Church in the Santa Marta favela that agreed to give him space to start the school. Possibly because of Baggio s earlier exploits, local and national media mobbed the school on its opening day, giving the project much-needed publicity. I went from madman to visionary, overnight, jokes Baggio. The courses cover basic software applications like word processing and spreadsheets, plus more advanced subjects including computer maintenance.
Tuition covers costs.
Baggio s idea has spread like a computer virus. Since 1994, CDI has helped open a total of 107 computing schools in poor neighborhoods in 13 Brazilian states. Some 32,000 youths have already taken the courses. Most recently, groups in Japan, the Philippines and Colombia have invited Baggio to come and tell them how they can replicate his program. I m asking telephone companies to donate telephone lines so that all Brazilian schools can get Internet connections, he says.