Managing Education

We've all heard stories of teachers using their own money to buy supplies for their students. It's a fairly common occurrence in this era of cash-strapped schools. But have you ever heard of teachers using their own salaries to pay for additional helpers in the classroom? This is the amazing partnership between the teachers, IMPACT Community India, and friends at home and abroad which is keeping the ABM School in Ammireddigudem running. The ABM School was founded in 1948 by the American Baptist Mission. Originally the plan was for the school to be built in the much larger town on Madhira, but the group came up against resistance from the ruling Nizam of Hyderabad. Instead, ABM built a school in a smaller village and focused their service on the Dalits. The school, still in operation, is now overseen by the government but managed by IMPACT Community India, under the umbrella of STBC-Madhira Field (an association of Telugu Baptist churches). Here are some quick statistics/facts on the school:

- 60 Elementary School students - 185 Middle/High School students - Ranked 5th of 77 district schools (previously ranked 1st or 2nd) - Subjects – English, Telugu, Math, Science, Geography, History,Political Science, Art - Science is their strongest performing subject - 98% of students are Dalit - 2% of students are OBC (Other Backward Communities) - Monday to Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. - 5 full-time teachers (2 Elementary, 3 Middle/High) - 8 substitute/helper teachers (2 Elementary, 6 Middle/High) So what role does IMPACT Community India actually play in this school? Well, quite a large one. The government provides salaries for the 5 full-time teachers, and though the school needs 12 for Middle/High and 4 for Elementary, the government has not approved any additional hires since 1992. The government also pays for student uniforms, books, daily lunch, and a year’s discretionary fund of `7000 rupees ($105). Through donations from alumni, current/former teachers, and from donors in the U.S. and India, IMPACT Community India facilitates the hire of six substitute/helper teachers for the Middle/High school and one for Elementary. The remaining one substitute teacher for the Elementary is paid for by the two full-time Elementary School teachers themselves. IMPACT Community also provides resources for the sports equipment, furniture, maintenance/upkeep of the grounds, a salary for the custodian, and electricity for the office which has a sole shared computer. Despite many obstacles, this school is high-performing one with a solid reputation. Just last year, the government opened up a new prestigious Model English Medium School less than one mile away from the ABM School. Many parents who sent their children to this new model school have re-enrolled them at ABM for this year because of the quality of the teaching. One teacher in particular, S. Mallikharjun finds new and creative ways to teach Science even with limited resources. He engages the students’ interest and motivates them through class awards that he pays for himself. Would you be willing to help improve the lives of these students through education? If you contact us, we would be happy to share a breakdown of the financial needs with you.