Konkani Kesari » Shanbhag School

Lunch at the Shanbhag School

Arun Shanbhag — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:47:41 +0000

In 2007, the Shanbhag School in Kumta (and their parent, the Konkan Education Trust), started to provide lunch for all their students. In the midst of a long day, the students had previously rushed home during their lunch hour. There are no cafeterias or restaurants near the school.

The school made a significant investment in cooking equipment and prepares a nutritious, vegetarian meal for the ~ 850 primary and secondary school students. Lunch is simply rice, sambar or daal, a lentil curry or vegetable and pickles (see actual student plate above).

During my meetings with parents of Scholarship recipients, and listening to comments at the Parents Teachers Meeting, parents absolutely love the school lunch program. Parents are relieved of the pressure to pack a lunch every morning, or have it ready for the lunch break. Parents are also surprised (and glad) their kids actually eat the variety of vegetables and lentils the school serves. The school subsidizes the lunch and charges students Rs 80 per month (~$2 per month, Rs 4 per meal or ~ 10 cents per lunch!). Students not on the meal plan can eat occasional meals and drop cash in an unmanned donation box.

Kids love the food too. Meals are taken in the company of friends (and associated peer-pressure to finish their plate). Lunch is done within 20-30 minutes, and since they still have an hour break, they get to play around, gossip, or browse the library.

Thus I showed up just before lunch time to “test the quality of the school lunch program.” I always have interesting reasons to be present wherever free lunch is served. Very delicious food and a primary reason why we included lunch as part of the scholarship package we provide needy students. Whenever you are in Kumta, you are welcome to join in for a free lunch!

See pics from the Lunch, below

This was in December last on a “casual Thursday” at the school. Thus the student’s colorful attire.

Boys and girls line separately for their lunches; senior students (X Std/grade) take turns serving. This day they also served a special “payasam” (see nearest bucket)

Students wait for all their colleagues to be served before starting.

Then after a brief benediction in Sanskrit (Shanti Mantra),

They start to eat.

One more of the lunch/ auditorium

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Posted in Food, Karnataka, Kids, Konkani, Kumta, Shanbhag School Tagged: lunch, meals, school lunch, students

Scholarships for the Needy

Arun Shanbhag — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 13:44:27 +0000

I have previously written about the Shanbhag School, an academic beacon in Kumta and surrounding villages.

The Shanbhag High School, managed by the Konkan Education Trust does not receive any governmental aid. But it follows the state determined academic syllabus and guidelines. While we attract many students who can afford fees, our family wanted to make good education particularly accessible to the poor. Thus last year we gave 16 scholarships to very needy students to attend either the Shanbhag High School, or the affiliated primary school, Saraswati Vidya Kendra. At a new site dedicated to our Scholarship activities, (Shikshan.org), you can browse the list of Scholarship Recipients for 2007-2008.

You can also read about my personal challenges in identifying needy girls: Where are all the needy girls?

We did not rest, last December (2007) during my travels to Kumta I visited most of the scholarship recipients in their homes. The visit served two purposes: (a) to meet the families and convince them of our commitment to support their child’s education ~ and in turn expect them to make education a priority; and (b) to ensure that these were indeed needy families, which I could determine from their living conditions.

They lived in simple 1 or 2 room homes, or with relatives, and it was emotionally overwhelming to experience the gratitude of these families. Below, I share with you some of the scholarship recipients in their home settings. Appropriately I have omitted their names.

We supported the boy in the center, flanked by his father and cousin sister. Being poor, the girl was enrolled in the local government run Kannada language school. She wanted to attend our English school, but being in 8th std (grade) it would have been academically disastrous for her to switch the language of instruction a year before the State Board Exams. This was an important reason why we started giving scholarships to students in primary school!

We supported the boy, shown here with his parents outside their home. He was in the 10th Std and in the recent State Board Exams scored greater than 90%! Ecstatic to think that we may have played a miniscule role in his academic success!

We supported the girl; this was their front room/living room/bedroom and the kids studied on the bed. Behind was a smaller kitchen/dining area.

She came from a family of traditional fisher folks.

We supported the boy. As discussed in Where are all the needy girls? the sister in 4th grade was enrolled in the Kannada language school. She wanted to be in the Shanbhag School with her brother but unaffordable. On hearing this, I asked her mother (father is no more) to enroll her in our school for the next year. When I visited Kumta last month, we got the girl enrolled with a full scholarship! Yaay!

You can see the kitchen and dining area in the back. As traditional families do, they sit on the floor to eat.

We are supporting the boy. You see one of several sisters in the background, who have all graduated from the Kannada language school. With limited professional or career options, they work as cooks and serve meals to students in a part of their house.

We are supporting one of these delightful twins, seen here drawing and finishing their home work.

During this recent visit to Kumta, I developed contacts with other schools in town and provided scholarships for their students. More on those at another time.

If you are interested in helping children get an outstanding education, see what we have started at Shikshan.org; and particularly, How to Help!

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Kids on a School Bus

Arun Shanbhag — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 20:56:08 +0000

When I asked folks at the Shanbhag School the best way to travel to Kodkani (about 15 kms from Kumta) to see Shilpa’s parents, they recommended that I ride the School bus. On Saturdays, school ends at noon and the bus drops off students in Kodkani. Riding the bus would thus bring me in Kodkani in time for lunch. And another experience to notch!

Leaving the school, the bus was packed! I felt guilty as a seat was saved for me. But gave me a chance to take a few pics.

Little kids from the adjacent primary school got the pride of place next to the driver. At each stop, the conductor would literally carry a little one and hand them over to one of their parents waiting at the stop. Then joyously they would scamper away.

The kids were superbly well behaved and engaged in mindless banter the entire way. This kid looked at me suspiciously the entire ride.

A bunch just behind me.

One of the spiffy school buses. Here in Kumta, cows are an ubiquitous presence. Chewing cud, this calf sauntered in just in time to have its pic taken. As M had not accompanied me to Kumta, this pic elicited the well expected: “sooooo cute!” That was for the calf, not the bus.

Shanbhag School in Kumta

Arun Shanbhag — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 17:54:15 +0000

The village of Chitrigi in Kumta (coastal Karnataka) is our ancestral home. Ever since my grandfather moved to Mumbai, we all grew up in the city and did not have much connection to Kumta. About a decade earlier, Kumta locals convinced our family to support a High School building in Kumta. We did, but our family still remained uninvolved in the school management.

A few years ago, I visited Kumta and got a tour of the school. I was thrilled to see an institution bearing my grandfather’s name. My joy multiplied on seeing needy students grateful for the basic services offered there. That was a turning moment in my life – a call to action, to serve this area, the students and the school!

Now every time I visit India, I make a beeline to Kumta, stay at a cousin’s house and work with the school management on improving facilities and educational opportunities for locals. And there is so much need. Everything from scholarships for needy students, to tutoring, to books for the library and developing new courses. And even when I am in Boston, I am constantly working with the management and my extended family, trying to develop consensus on new projects. And what a satisfying mission it is.

The question I ask myself is:
With all my education, training and skills, how do I help improve educational opportunities in Kumta, and ultimately the standard of living of the locals?

In future posts I will share some of the work that we have done over the last few years. And when I recount the challenges, you will realize it is not as simple as donating a few old computers.

These are pictures I took at the school on my first visit there in 2004, with my ~~older~~ archaic Olympus point and shoot.

The ground floor was first completed and classes commenced in 2002. Very soon the classrooms were at full capacity and construction was started on the upper floor. Note the ongoing construction.

There was a school function going on in the far auditorium. Of course, students sit on the floor.

and many more were sitting at the edge of the quadrangle, oblivious to the goings on in the auditorium. And a well used school bell!

Shoes and sandals are left outside classrooms.

The spectacular view looking out from the top of the school! Yes, it is on top of a hill and in the distance I could catch a glimmer of the Arabian Sea.

And the view out front from street level!