Teacher Appreciation

May 7th is teacher appreciation day and being that it's the start of the new Nepali school year, I'd like to introduce our all-star teaching team.  They make so much of the magic happen each and every single day at Kopila Valley.  They work both inside and outside of the classroom all hours of the day (and sometimes nights) to make sure our students have what they need.  The kids all really love and respect them and I honestly don't know where we'd be without them.  It takes a village!  Meet our amazingly awesome teachers!

Gauri Gurung 

Gauri is our 2^nd grade teacher at Kopila Valley. She has a bachelors degree, and in her free time loves to read, dance, and play with children. Gauri is a very positive and confident teacher, and is a wonderful role model for the children of Kopila Valley. It gives her much pride and satisfaction to serve underprivileged children, and to have a hand in brightening their futures. She hopes that the children of Kopila Valley will grow to be strong and independent citizens of Nepal, who will work to serve and improve their country. Gauri is happy to be a part of the solution, and hopes that the work of Kopila Valley will inspire people all over the world to do their part to combat injustice and inequality.

 “I am very happy to be a part of the solution in Nepal by being a good teacher for the students of Kopila Valley.” – Gauri Gurung

Rajesh Giri

Rajesh is our upper level math teacher here at Kopila Valley School. He graduated from a local university with a bachelors degree in Environmental Management. Rajesh loves to read good books, listen to music, play cricket and basketball, and practice yoga. He is a passionate educator and prides himself on his ability to reach out to those individuals less fortunate than him. He works everyday to teach conservation and environmental ethics to the students of Kopila Valley, and to make this project sustainable. His favorite thing about working at the school is the loving and compassionate atmosphere that has been created by the Kopila Valley team. His wish is for Kopila Valley School to continue to grow and change the lives of underprivileged children in Nepal.

“Kopila Valley is the most beautiful place on this planet where only love and compassion exist. My favorite thing about working at Kopila Valley is the atmosphere of cooperation and care amongst all of us.” – Rajesh Giri

Neelima Thapa

Neelima is a nursery teacher at Kopila Valley. She is working on her bachelors degree at a local University and is in her second year of study. She loves art and music, and loves her job as an educator. Neelima fills the nursery classroom with joy and creates an encouraging and supportive environment for the children in her class. Her favorite thing about Kopila Valley is the positive atmosphere that the staff and students have created, and the healthy food and medical care that is provided to community and school. She hopes that more schools like Kopila Valley will be opened in remote areas of Nepal to provide the same opportunities to isolated villages and communities. Her wish is for Kopila Valley to continue to expand and flourish in the years to come.

“My favorite thing about working at Kopila Valley is the opportunity to provide scholarship, food, and health education to the community.” – Neelima Thapa

 Vimla Kumari Chhetri 

Vimla is our health teacher at Kopila Valley. She has a masters degree in education, and feels truly blessed to be able to teach at Kopila Valley everyday. Vimla loves to read and dance, and enjoys getting creative with her lesson plans! She is very confident in her abilities as an educator, and always shows her students kindness and respect. Her favorite thing about working at Kopila Valley is the emphasis that is placed on student oriented learning, making it a priority for the students to understand rather than merely memorize. Vimla believes that every child is special and deserves attention and the opportunity to be educated. Her goal for Kopila Valley is to provide all students with a loving and supportive environment in which to learn, ultimately brightening the futures of the children of Surkhet, Nepal. She hopes that individuals all over the world will learn from Kopila Valley, and do their part to stand up for the underprivileged. 

 “Think positive, do positive.” – Vimla Kumari Chhetri

Lalit Khatri 

Lalit teaches Math and Computer class at Kopila Valley. He was born and raised in Surkhet where he received a high school diploma from a local secondary school, and hopes to begin working on a bachelors degree next year. Lalit loves to watch movies, listen to music, read books, and play chess. He has very good computer skills, and loves to learn about the latest technology. Lalit learns very quickly, and is always excited and willing to learn new techniques and teaching styles. His favorite aspect of being a teacher at Kopila Valley is how much he learns from his students and colleagues. He feels blessed to be a part of the Kopila project, and hopes to continue working to create positive change in this world. 

“Here, I don’t feel like I am working. I am always learning and growing.” – Lalit Khatri

Stay tuned as we continue to introduce our team!!!

instagram love

Yesterday we had a day off of school for Nepal's Labor Day.  I spent the morning catching up on work and emails and cleaning my room.  Every surface was covered with papers, books, legos, blocks, and Thomas the train pieces and I hadn't packed my winter clothes away.  Then we all went down and worked on the kitchen with the Aunties for a while.  It's the hot dry start of summer and there are lots of mosquitos, flies, and my all time favorite, cockroaches hanging around.  We hosed the kitchen down and went through our pantry.  The uncles are working on expanding our outdoor eating area because we're running out of space under the little gazebo and the kids are all eating scattered everywhere, which drives me a little crazy. 

My friends got me into instagram and I love it just like they said I would.  Here are some pictures from our week!

Namraj and Maya on my lapT.V. timeNena and Safira (home and wellness fellows) making fermented vegetables with the kids!Visit to the temple for a blessing!We spent our last Saturday before school started swimming at the river. Hari and Namraj building a moatWe love our mornings reading on the porch. This is a favorite spot in front of my room.Shanti, Monica, and Maya walking to the market to buy mangos.Just before school. #myboysI've been back and forth to the new site all week. Belu is my friend and care-taker on the property!Amrika's been planting all kinds of salad, cucumbers and tomatoes everywhere. Best gardener in the world. Namraj started his first week at nursery school. I walked in and found him like this. Not sure he's totally ready.Ben our incredible English teacher hanging with the kids at recess.I'm going to spend the rest of the week introducing you all to our Nepali team!  They are the people who make it all happen.  

Pankha's car

I've always said that Pankha should be a mechanic or some sort of engineer. He loves figuring out how things work, which sometimes gets him into trouble because he's always "that kid" taking things apart and sticking wires into electrical sockets...but lately he's been learning to channel that energy into making things. This is one of his creations from the week.

Yup, that's an old coca-cola bottle.

People who come to visit are often surprised that the kids here don't have toys but it's amazing to watch what they come up with when left to their own devices. They make up games using sticks, stones, rope and scraps of rubber. Over summer break the boys made their own "Life of Pi" inspired raft and took it to the river. I couldn't help but smile every time I looked at them swimming around with it.

It's fun to think about all the potential out there that will be unleashed when we offer our world's children, their most basic right to an education. The 67 million children worldwide who are out of school = 67 million more little minds to create, problem solve, and collaborate to make the world better. Kids just like Pankha with their own unique abilities and talents, who can turn a coke bottle into an electric car in an hour :)  Think about all that potential and how exciting it is. I know that most people wouldn't use the word "exciting" with that stat in the same paragraph and yes, it's also really sad and heartbreaking and despicable that we have so many children who are suffering in our world.  But I use the word exciting because the solution is a simple one and this is something we can fix with relatively little resources. Education in my humble opinion, really is the answer.     

Orientation and such

waiting for assembly to start

We designate our first two days of every school year to orientation. It involves welcoming our new students, a ton of scheduling logistics, and going over school rules and procedures. It takes two full days and a lot of collaboration and hard work.  The kids all receive their new books for the year and are measured for new school uniforms.  We have our guardians fill out a school agreement form to be sure that they do their part and commit themselves to our mission. We've been trying to figure out the bus pick up route and fill out paperwork for each and every one of our student files.

We go over the dress code, health and hygiene, morning assembly, attendance, and safety. The kids rotate from station to station. I was with Man Kumari (our science teacher) and Safira (our home fellow) and we definitely had the serious station. Our topics included stranger danger, drugs and alcohol, bullying, and sexual harassment. Not the most "FUN" things to talk about and the conversation varied depending on the age group but the kids really did follow along and participate, and it felt good to have an open and honest conversation with them.

We also have our students sign an honor code and we talk about what it means to be a Kopila student both in and outside of school. The kids pledge that they will not "lie, cheat, steal, or disrespect others."  John implemented the honor code this year and it's been a really good way to hold the kids accountable for their actions. 

Over the next few days the kids will get split up into their houses, (Harry Potter style) and then the competition for the Kopila cup begins! We're kicking off this week with a big field day competition. Assembly was really great today.  Ben announced the kids who made honor role and the principal's list.  We introduced our new school bus driver, Ganesh, and our new school nurse Srijana! We're so excited to welcome them both to the team. The kids seem really into the school spirit and ready to kick off the new year.

In other news, our well rig hit 120 feet today and things are looking pretty muddy!  Water (at our future High School site) should come any day now.

Thank you all so much for sharing in our school bus excitement and Matt Madeiro's birthday surprise! Thanks to my teachers, principal, staff and fellows for all their hard work these past few days :)

Krishna Bogati and Sagar on the front porch all ready for school

First day of School Surprise

Today is the first day of school and boy do we have a big surprise!!!!!  Our school bus has arrived just in time for the new year!!!

This is a game changer for our students and exactly what we needed to expand our reach and provide access to kids who would not have the chance otherwise. It will also be saving many of our current students 2-5 hours (on foot) of commuting each day.  That's extra time they can spend on homework, helping siblings, and doing work around their homes. As for me, I can finally fit my entire family into one vehicle. What a gift!!!  

Test driving! Our little tribute to Matt MadeiroView from my office. My heart skips a beat every time I look out and see the bus parked there.Thank you Matt Madeiro and all of you who made this dream come true!  It is starting to feel more and more real by the day.  We're coordinating the bus route and bus stops and timing today and tomorrow.  First pick-ups start Wednesday.  Thanks for sharing in our excitement!!!  More videos and photos to come. We love you. xoxo