Alice Project Bodhgaya

ALICEPROJECT  – UNIVERSAL EDUCATION SCHOOL SARNATH
PH- 0091-542-2595062 Mobi- 09415291478 FAX-2585380; e-mail v_giacomin@hotmail.com; Web. www.aliceproject.org; Web: www.aliceproject.info

Dear friends,

I realized that many of you did not know that we have opened the school for local children in Bodhgaya (Barbatta, Dandawa villages). As you know, we were compelled to shut down the school due to economic problems (our main sponsor from Germany was a victim of the economical crisis on 2008). We then closed the school when the senior students were ready for class X exams. We got very positive results: all the students brilliantly passed the exams (60% First Division). One student was first among all the students of the District. For one year we kept the school closed. Then, we decided to open the hostel part of the school for Chakma students. Our Bodhgaya school is recognized by Indian Government (Sanskrit Board) from class IX to class XII and B.A. (University).  Now it is the Exam Centre for Sanskrit students from several Indian States.  So, we decided to accept only students for Senior High School and Degree College. The first batch of 25 Chakma students (class IX) arrived in 2009, from Arunachal Pradesh. Now we have 52 resident Chakma students studying in class IX, X and XI. (We will write a new newsletter about Chakmas and their sponsors). At this time there were no local children in our school. Before Kalachakra Initiation, our President, Tenzin Tsewang, met His Holiness The Dalai Lama (who is the Patron of Alice Project) in South India and talked about our Educational Project and our successful results. When His Holiness came to know that there was not an Alice Project school for local children in Bodhgaya, He asked our President to open again the school and He promised to support it.

Without delay, we opened the admission for primary school children. The response from the villagers was enthusiastic. To avoid the previous mistakes (almost free of cost education), we are charging 50 rupees monthly, as fees. We realized that it is totally wrong to give something to the kids or their families as charity. They will grow with “beggar mentality” and, of course, they will not respect the “donors”. Nothing should be “free of cost”. What if the families cannot afford to pay 50 Rs.?  In these cases, we offer to the parents jobs in our construction project.

We inaugurated the new school, for 220 children, two months ago. Ten teachers have been employed.

During the Kalachakra Initiation, on a special auspicious day, His Holiness’s Secretary called our President informing him to collect H.H. donation for the new school.

Needless to say we are delighted not only with the donation, but mainly for the direct interest H.H. has for our school.

Now we have found more friends who have promised to support the new Bodhgaya School. Amongst these are our friends Camilla and Lorenzo, from the Italian Onlus Associazione Anjali who are currently working as volunteers at the Aghor Foundation, in Varanasi. They have kindly offered the smart board and also a contribution for printing new books for the Bodhgaya children, beside teaching religious anthropoly at Sarnath School.

Your advice and contribution of any kind are welcome so that this  new “His Holiness Bodhgaya School” becomes a pilot Centre for Spiritual Education integrated with traditional instruction.

Valentino Giacomin

Ps. I am sorry and I apologize if I did mistakes on sending this mail-newsletter. If someone does not want to receive any  more our mail-newsletter, please, let me know.