EDUCATION
We at VICYA believe that education is the foundation for building a productive and fulfilling life. Our children are the future of India. Most of the children in the villages are eligible only for government school education. Although these are free, they are often five kilometers or more from the village, have no desks or chairs (and sometimes no buildings), and are often cancelled due to rain. Educational quality is marginal and the children are often corporally punished for even the mildest transgressions. Many parents refuse to send their children to school because they do not understand the value of education and/or they want their children to earn money for the family.
The women in the SHG's have been instrumental in promoting education for children and for spearheading literacy classes. Furthermore, to countervail the poor quality of the government schools, VICYA has opened a preschool/kindergarten for children ages 3 - 5 with the future goal of enrolling students up to the 5th standard. We emphasize the importance of education and create a nurturing environment for the students. We have enrolled dozens of children from the SHG villages and we employ one teacher (also from the village) with several years of teaching experience. Funding is through nominal tuition and community donations. The program has been well received, but future funding remains a significant problem.