Buddha Academy Boarding School Vocational Training, Kathmandu, Nepal
Buddha Academy Boarding School offers vocational training programs in tailoring, carpentry and electrical work to high-school students, fully funded by TRAS.
Tailoring Program
From its humble beginnings in the early 1990s, Buddha Academy Boarding School in Kathmandu has grown into a thriving institution, taking in and educating the poorest children: orphans, the disabled, street children and youth, and children of poverty-stricken villagers. The catalyst for this change is the Principal, a Tibetan refugee who was sponsored in his youth by a TRAS member, and who is now in turn helping children and youth in need.
Carpentry Program
In the mid-1990s, TRAS paid for the vocational training classrooms to be built and has since been funding vocational training courses at the school. In the 1990s, these classes were the only way a student could be assured of a job. Now the academic excellence of Buddha Academy Boarding School is such that many students go to university or find office jobs. The vocational training courses are now given to all senior students as part of the regular school curriculum and are recognised by the Ministry of Education for the School Leaving Certificate. The vocational skills stand all the students in good stead in their own lives; and for those who want to continue studying in these fields, the vocational training courses offer a good foundation. Four recent graduates are studying engineering and surveying at university, thanks in part to the training they received in electrical work.
Electrician Training Program
Several students take the vocational training courses full time, and the spare places are offered to young people from outside the Academy who have had no chance for an education – often their families have come in desperation to Kathmandu looking for work, and there is nothing for their children. Again, the success rate is high, with carpentry students getting good jobs in the furniture making industry, and tailoring students finding work in clothing factories. Several graduates return to their original villages, where their skills will be useful.
