In 1997, The Tibetan Children's Education Foundation built an education center and boarding hostel in Clement Town (in Northern India) for children of the exiled Tibetan community. His Holiness the Dalai Lama named the center Kyitsel-ling, which roughly translates as "a place for growing up in happiness." Building on their success at Clement Town, The Tibetan Children's Foundation is now working to build a similar Kyitsel-ling in Sikkim, a remote state in the Himalayas, which will offer quality educational opportunities to underprivileged and needy children there, many of whom are children of nomadic Tibetans.
"These children are scattered in various rural and far flung areas and although their school fees etc. are provided, their attendance at schools is irregular and unsatisfactory. Also, invariably all their parents are illiterate and cannot provide them any guidance or teaching at home. In order for these children to be able to go to school on a regular basis and for them to have further support for their education at home, we need to build an education center at this location. Doing so will ensure that all these children ( and hopefully hundreds more over the years) will attend school regularly and also have access to reference materials, computers and teachers to help with their home work and provide the necessary support at 'home'."
For more information on The Tibetan Children's Education Foundation, please visit www.tibetanchildrenseducation.org. There you can read more about the Sikkim Kyitsel-ling Project, and find out how you can support their inspiring work.