Shanti Bhavan Childrens Project

The mission of Shanti Bhavan is unique and ambitious – to help children of deprived backgrounds become leaders through excellence in education and holistic personal development. Shanti Bhavan represents a radical change from the current, short-term basic literacy model of most non-profit educational institutions. Shanti Bhavan is committed to long-term access to high-quality education, with an emphasis on holistic personal development. We seek to provide our students with an education at pace with the rapidly evolving needs of the work place that gives them the skills to succeed both professionally and personally. Shanti Bhavan is driven by the belief that all children, regardless of their socio-economic backgrounds, have the capacity to excel in academics and attain great professional careers if endowed with the opportunity to succeed from an early age.

Shanti Bhavan is a residential school where our children live and learn for approximately 9 months out of the year. Many of our students come from homes that do not have the adequate resources to provide for a child, such as clean water, clothing, food, or shelter. Furthermore, complicated family dynamics can sometimes make it dangerous for children to stay at home. By having our children live on campus during their education we are able to eliminate these detrimental factors and minimize distractions to ensure that our children are focused and prepared to do their best academically. At Shanti Bhavan, we believe that only once these basic needs are met can students be expected to succeed.

Additionally, Shanti Bhavan’s volunteer program adds a unique element to the typical model of a residential school. Volunteers supplement the full-time teaching staff for pre-school to twelfth grade. By attracting diverse volunteers from around the world, our students become exposed to different cultures and lifestyles, giving them a more robust worldview and a global perspective on international issues.

The school is accredited by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination (CISCE) in New Delhi. Core subjects include English Grammar and Literature, Mathematics, History and Civics, and Indian Languages (Hindi and Tamil specifically). This is the most rigorous national curriculum in India.

Finally, Shanti Bhavan offers a wide variety of extracurricular and skills development activities from dance, choir, and musical instrument lessons to soccer, basketball, public speaking, and debate. By allowing our students to explore individual passions outside of their academic studies, our students become well-rounded, are able to express themselves creatively, and learn valuable skills that will help them adapt to an ever-changing world.

Shanti Bhavan’s model is a holistic approach which involves providing children with food, shelter, clothing, medical care, and community, as well as a top-tier education. Our students live in comfortable dormitories complete with individual beds, washrooms, dressers, closets, and study spaces. They are fed 3 nutritious meals per day in addition to a midday snack and chai. Furthermore, our students are cared for by a dedicated team of caretakers who supervise their dorms and help them with everyday tasks such as maintaining a consistent daily schedule and tending to household chores such as washing and folding clothes as well as teaching the students how to clean their personal spaces. Shanti Bhavan also employs trained teachers from India to teach ISC/ICSE curriculum classes. In addition, qualified volunteers from around the world teach other subjects, which provides the children with a robust worldview and an opportunity to learn about other cultures. Lastly, Shanti Bhavan has a medical clinic on campus to assist children with minor cuts and bruises, as well as plans in place to deal with more significant illness or injury. All of our children receive the necessary vaccines when they arrive at school and attend yearly doctor and dental checkups.

Shanti Bhavan’s long-term approach to poverty alleviation and education is based on the belief that any child can succeed, given the right opportunities. Shanti Bhavan graduates have a 100% university acceptance rate and work for Fortune 500 companies such as Amazon, Deloitte, EY, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, and Mercedes-Benz, and give 50-80% of their salaries back to their families - creating a powerful ripple effect in their communities and society as a whole. In addition, five Shanti Bhavan graduates have already completed their Master’s degrees in programs including Business Administration, International Studies, Applied Genetics, Psychology, and Public Policy.

98% of our children graduate from college. 97% of Shanti Bhavan alumni are now working full-time at firms. All of our working graduates are the primary or sole income-earner for their families.

Additionally, Shanti Bhavan is featured on Netflix’s documentary series Daughters of Destiny, which won the “Television with a Conscious” award at the 2018 Television Academy Honors.

Each year we have to turn away hundreds of students simply because we do not have the resources or facilities to accommodate them. Our goal is to fundraise to build a second Shanti Bhavan in the next few years to serve more children in need and spread our mission of ending cycles of generational poverty through education. The new campus will be located between 1.5-3 hours driving distance from Bangalore, and will serve children in the Tamil Nadu/Karnataka area. At Shanti Bhavan, we believe that our model is replicable and scalable, and we are excited to be working on expanding our reach to be better able to serve the communities around us.