" EMPOWERING LIVES THROUGH EDUCATION "
Founder of Tribal Welfare Projects,Khatguria
Emeritus Professor,
School of Education and Child Development
at Drury University, USA
The tribal school,Protima Child and Woman Development Centre(PCWDC) was opened on June 21, 2007, with 41 multi-age students and 2 female teachers from the tribal community. The school was established by Dr. Protima K. Roy and Dr. Rabindra N. Roy. These tribal children are first-generation learners. Located in Durgapur, West Bengal, India, the school is a division of Hem Sheela Model School(HSMS), which was established by Dr. Rabindra N. Roy in loving memory of his parents in 1995. HSMS is a sister school of Drury University, USA.
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Creation of Tribal School
The PCWDC is located in a village named Khatguria. This village is about 6 miles away from the main campus of Hem Sheela Model School.
In 2007, a survey of the village community was conducted. The main purpose of this survey was to get to know the village head along with the villagers, for the purpose of starting an elementary school.
Families were interviewed in 'full moon light' because many had to go to work during the day. At that time, the village did not have any electricity, but at present it does.
The leaders of the village designated an area for the elementary school to be built. The village community, although mostly illiterate, supported the idea of building an elementary school in their village and agreed to send their children to the school. This is despite the fact that villagers had a choice to send their children to a government school located far away from this village.
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Making Dreams Real
Extensive research, discussions with community members including tribal women, childhood memories, several journeys to Indian villages alongwith educational experiences in America - all set the stage for starting the tribal school. Drs. Roy were convinced that only through education and training they could improve the quality of their lives.
Founder of Hem Sheela Model School, Durgapur
Emeritus Professor of Chemistry at Drury University, USA
Mission :
The mission of the Protima Child and Woman Development Centre is to:
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Instill the value of education in tribal children and women
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Provide them with basic education
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Help them acquire skills (eg. technology )that they need to get a job in order to live successfully in the 21st century.
Goals :
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Help villagers accept the diversity of human culture, language, religion, history and experience.
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Provide an environment which affirms the equality and worth of all people.
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Involve different members of the community to participate in developing the “whole child” (physically, morally, socially, emotionally and intellectually).
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Eradicate illiteracy for the children and adults (particularly women) of the tribal villages
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Provide financial resources and tools for formal education.
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Facilitate further education for meritorious students.
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Make the students aware of nutrition and health care.
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Improving lives of the tribal community.
Objectives :
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Children will be able to read and write in Bengali and do mathematics.
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After they achieve proficiency in the above mentioned subjects, children will be able to learn English.
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Rural women will be able to read and write in Bengali and do basic calculations.
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Computer literacy will be provided to all women and children associated with the project.
Activities :
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Motivate tribal children so that they attend school and study everyday. This is achieved by the interactions and incentives from the dedicated teachers.
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Help tribal children to develop healthy habits. This was accomplished by local physicians visiting the school and teaching about effective health practices.Now, physicians from the adjoining clinic conduct regular health checkups.
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Motivate village women 1. To participate in child care programs delivered by professionals. 2. To attend workshops delivered by local doctors on Women and Children’s Health Care.
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Motivate mothers and their children to participate in computer training programs.
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Mr. John and Mrs. Crystal Beuerlein's gifts have been instrumental in the growth and development of the school. In 2010, they funded the new elementary schoolhouse pictured above. This philanthropic gesture led to the construction of the very first concrete building in the village with six classrooms, a teacher’s room and toilets with electricity and running water. Also, because of Hem Sheela Model School’s relationship with Drury, many of Drury’s faculty, administrators and students visit the Tribal School every year.
The generous gift to the tribal school from Dr. Michael P. Doyle and Mrs. Janice Doyle, long time friends of Drs. Roy, allowed for a secondary block to be built. Since this school is not affiliated, the students had to go to a secondary school in a different locality and travel there on bicycles which were provided by the Tribal School. With the addition of the secondary block, students in grade 5 and beyond could continue their quality education through additional tutoring for enrichment in the same school. This block was dedicated by Dr. Doyle and his family on December 31, 2016.