Vivekananda Public School

Vivekananda Public School

Juanga, Orissa, India

Managed by Michael A. Daube Charitable Trust

2002 Annual Report

2002 Annual Report......

1. - Support provided by ASHA - Silicon Valley and ASHA - Yale......

2. - History of the Vivekananda Public School......

3. - Teaching Staff......

4. - Services Provided......

5. - School Construction Programme......

6 - 2002 Budget......

2002 Running Costs - Summary......

7. - 2003 Budget - proposed......

2003 Running Costs......

8. - Additional Activities that require funding - 2003 and beyond......

Construction of the extension to the school......

Provision of toilet facilities......

School Meals Programme......

9. - Additional Sources of Financial Support......

Appendix 1: School Health Camps......

Vivekanada Public School - 2002 Annual Report02-Jun-2019

1. - Support provided by ASHA - Silicon Valley and ASHA - Yale

We would like to express our sincere thanks for the support that ASHA - SV and ASHA - Yale have provided to the Vivekananda Public School.

To date the following funds have been made available:

• Funds from ASHA - Yale

August 2002 - Flood Relief - $500

• Funds from ASHA - Silicon Valley (part of a three year commitment)

Annual funding 2001 - $4,500

• Funds from ASHA - Yale

December 2000 – Infrastructure Donation for New Construction - $1,500

The following report provides a summary of the services that the school has been able to provide since its construction in 2001. The funds provided above, along with donations from other organisations, have been used to help us to achieve the accomplishments to date and are accounted for in section 6 of this report.

In the coming years we would like to be able to continue expanding both the number of classes and breadth of services provided to the students. The proposed school construction program is outlined in section 5 of this report with associated additional costs detailed in section 8. Additional programmes that we are interested in running, should funding become available, are also detailed in section 8.

2. - History of the Vivekananda Public School

Orissa is one of the poorest states in India. The coastal region, by the delta of the Devi and Mahanadi Rivers, is particularly stressed and suffers frequent cyclones, draughts and floods. Only 50 kms from the city of Cuttack, it is nearly inaccessible due to poor road conditions and monsoon rains. The State Government does not provide the villages in this region with adequate access to medical or education facilities.

The Michael A. Daube Charitable Trust was created in 1996 to help provide rural development in Orissa. Primarily, the Trust founded a hospital in the village of Juanga to serve an area of approximately 25 km and population of approximately 70,000 people in the surrounding villages.

As a result of the poverty in the state, Orissa also experiences high illiteracy rates in rural areas. After the super-cyclone, that hit the region in 1999 and destroyed all of the existing decrepit government schools, it became apparent that the Trust also needed to deal with the education requirements of the area in the vicinity of the Trust's hospital. This was necessary not only to help the inhabitants of this region start to get their lives back to normality but to also provide for their longer term future. The provision of decent education service would open up the possibility of a brighter future for many of the region's children. As a result the concept of the Vivekananda Public School was born.

The Vivekananda Public School, founded in 2001, is central to a network of villages on the south bank of the Mahanadi. The students, currently 184 in number, are mostly all schedule casts and many lost their relatives in the supercyclone. Were it not for the existence of this school many of these children would be denied an education due to poverty and a lack of resources.

3. - Teaching Staff

The current student to teacher ratio is 31:1. The headmaster and teaching staff are listed below, along with their respective qualifications.

Vivekanada Public School - 2002 Annual Report1printed: 02-Jun-2019

Headmaster

Khiroda Kumar Sahoo, M.A. in Political Science

Teachers

Ganeswar Lenka, B.A. (Education)

Pravasini Lenka, B.Sc. Hons (Zoology)

Prabina Jena,

B.A (Education)

Nalini Khuntia. B.A. (Education)

Susant Kumar Sahoo, B.Sc.

Vivekanada Public School - 2002 Annual Report1printed: 02-Jun-2019

Vivekanada Public School - 2002 Annual Report1printed: 02-Jun-2019

Other staff include:

Jogendra Mallick, Office Attendant

Ugresen Parida, Child Attendant

Nalina Mallick, Watch man

Nirmala Sahoo, Aiya

4. - Services Provided

The school year begins in July and runs until the following June, providing 47 weeks of education in each school year.

Vivekanada Public School - 2002 Annual Report1printed: 02-Jun-2019

The school currently provides education for 184 students with an average of 46 students per class. It is anticipated that in the school year starting July 2003 the student numbers will increase from 184 to 230 providing the construction of an additional classroom occurs prior to that point.

Table 1- Students figures by class (as of Dec 2002)

Vivekanada Public School - 2002 Annual Report1printed: 02-Jun-2019

In addition to receiving an education, all students also benefit from an annual healthcare assessment provide free by the Michael A. Daube Charitable Trust hospital, also situated in Juanga, Orissa.

All students are provided with a school uniform at the start of the school year.

5. - School Construction Programme

At the moment the school consists of three classrooms housed in a single building, as seen in the picture to the right. The building has been constructed so that it is strong enough to also function as a safe haven during a cyclone or flood.

Our original intention was to expand the school at the rate of one class per year, thereby enabling us to meet our overall objective of a school offering education for ages 4 – 16. However, due to lack of funds in 2002 we were unable to continue with the expansion program. As a result the services provided are still the same as those provided at the end of 2001. As soon as additional funds are made available it is our intention to continue with the original programme of expansion.

While recently conducting a health clinic at a school in Baramundai village we were able to view, what is in out opinion, a very successfully constructed schoolhouse that has been built with government funds. (See Picture 2)

We feel out of all the buildings we have we examined, the design and low cost of this structure would be ideal for the proposed extension to Vivekananda Public School.

To continue with the expansion of the Vivekananda Public School, and construct a new building similar to that shown in Picture 2, will cost approximately 5 Lakh Rupees (US$10,000). This new building would provide us with the additional four classrooms required to allow for growth over the next four years. In order to comply with state guidelines, as advised by the education department, a high school must have available at least one acre of land. The Trust has already purchased a suitable plot of land close to the existing school building thereby providing adequate space to construct the proposed extension to the school.

6 - 2002 Budget

2002 Running Costs - Summary

See below for breakdown of expenditure for each category in the above table

Salaries - Teachers

Salaries - Other Staff

School Uniforms & Materials

Provided to 184 Children

ItemsCost per Total

Student (Rs)

School UniformRs 116.3021400

School ShoesRs 123.0022605

School BooksRs 161.0029568

School SocksRs 20.50 1025

School BagRs70.0012880

School BeltRs 6.26 1152

School TieRs 6.20 1138

School BadgeRs 3.00 600

Total Rs 90368

7. - 2003 Budget - proposed

2003 Running Costs

The following costs take into account our desire to add an additional class of students during 2003 should we be able to secure funding for the proposed extension to the school. Therefore, the following additional costs have been taken into account:

• the salary for an additional teacher,
• school uniforms for an additional 46 children

If the school expands at a rate of one class per year for the next four years, as in our original plans, the annual running costs will increase by approx Rs46,600 per year (US$ 980) to accommodate the costs associated with an additional 46 students per year.

8. - Additional Activities that require funding - 2003 and beyond

Below are brief details and proposed costings for some of the other activities that we would like to initiate should funding be available.

Construction of the extension to the school

To expand the school to provide an additional four class rooms (as outlined in section 5) will cost 5 Lakh Rupees (US$10,000).

This covers the cost of both materials and labour. The land on which the extension would be constructed has already been purchased by the Trust and therefore there is no additional cost associated with this.

Provision of toilet facilities

The construction of two lavatories at the school will cost in the region of Rs 30,000 (US$625).

School Meals Programme

We would like to be able to provide each student with one nutritious meal per school day during school term time. To run this programme in 2003, for 230 students, would cost Rs271,400 (US$5,700) per annum. To accommodate an increase in student numbers of 46 per year the annual costs of running this programme would also rise by Rs54,280 (US$1130) each year.

In order to be able to offer this programme we would require that a donor be prepared to make an upfront commitment to meet the annual running costs.

9. - Additional Sources of Financial Support

In addition to the support that has previously been provided by the Asha SV and Asha Yale groups, funding for the school has also been committed by the following organisations.

• The Friends of Galicia, Spain have committed to meet part of the running cost through the payment of staff salaries.
• The Clahoun School, New York has raised small sums of money through fundraising events such as bake sales and parties. They have also arranged for students from both schools to communicate with each other, thereby providing opportunities for the students to correspond in English.
• The cost of building and developing the school library will be met by the fundraising activities of the Keegan family, Ireland.

Appendix 1: School Health Camps

• Step1- the student checks in giving name, age and village information

• Step2- the student (who has been told to bring a stool sample) is checked at the pathology desk

• Step3- the blood pressure of the student is taken by the nurse.

• Step4- weight is measured

• Step5- height is measured

• Step6- the student is checked by a doctor for signs of vitamin deficiency or any other irregularities

• Step7- another doctor checks the diagnoses and provides advice on treatment. Advice on better nutrition and/or hygiene is also given to the student. The student is advised as to whether they he need to visit the main hospital facility for any other tests or treatment.

• Step8- any vitamins or medicines needed is then provided.

A HAPPY, HEALTHY STUDENT EXITS!!!!!!!

Vivekanada Public School - 2002 Annual Report1printed: 02-Jun-2019