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One year on - a day of reflection

05 August 2011
Posted in Campus Blog

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Friday 5th August is the one year anniversary of the floods and mudflows that started just before midnight in 2010. Shops and restaurants in Leh and the surrounding areas are closed today in respect for those who died or lost their homes and loved ones.
Many schools have stayed open and to mark the occasion DWLS held a special assembly today. Prayers were held and Class 7B gave a presentation on the environment and geology of Ladakh.

Mr Karma Thargyil, Head of the Infant Section, then gave a short speech about the disaster and those whose lives it had affected.  Mr Thargyil lost his own house to the mud. The whole school observed two minutes of silence. Further prayers were said to conclude this special assembly.

Despite the serious effect this event had on the school and the Leh and Choglamsar areas, life appears to be back to normal with houses rebuilt and nearly all of the debris cleared away, however agricultural land covered with mud will take time to become fertile soil again. The school campus needs much landscaping work to be done and physical defences are being built to protect against possible future inundations.

Materials, equipment and furnishings that were lost at the school have mostly been replaced  but the school still urgently needs funds to replace the Montessori equipment (2 x classroom sets at 234,000 INR(Rps)/ US$5,200/ €3,700/ £3,300) and to re-stock the library with books to meet the school needs and CBSE requirements (450,000 INR(Rps)/ US$10,000/ €7,200/ £6,400) for a further 1500 books). Contact us for a list of examples of the novels required This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

School Magazine

29 June 2011
Posted in Campus Blog

The first ever edition of DRUKSKAT is now available for you to read and download (5.5MB): DRUKSKAT.

DRUKSKAT is the school magazine of the Druk White Lotus Schools.  This first edition celebrates the achievements of students and staff during the 2009-10 school year. Materials are presented in the English, Bothi and Hindi languages.

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"The name of the magazine - DRUKSKAT (voice of the dragon) - thought of by the students is symbolic of the times the school is going through; times wherein it is attempting to crystallize and simultaneously express its true image in the face of all challenges."  Prasad Eledath, Principal

Volunteers

09 June 2011
Posted in Campus Blog

Shravan Muralidhar is the guy from school who was always disinterested in the monotonous school schedule. Having done his Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) specialising in PAINTING, he is now pursuing his M.Des in Visual Communication. He is here to experience ART the young way, the innocent way and the way tiny ones do it and basically getting the children into a new experience.

Sinja Hammer is 19 years old and just graduated from school in Germany with main courses in English and Economics. She will stay at the school for half a year, assisting the teachers in the infant section and in the English class. In cooperation with the Art teacher she will also help to redecorate some classrooms affected by the flood.  She will also be conducting the reading classes with the students.

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Varun Saini is an alumnus of the Indian Naval Academy and the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. After spending six years at the Indian Navy, he joined the corporate world and works as a consultant at Bain and Company (India). He is fond of travelling, reading and adventure sports. He is presently assisting the teachers in the Mathematics and Science department at the school.

Reaching for the stars

08 June 2011
Posted in Stories

It’s not often that the students of Druk School get to meet someone who has been on top of the world, literally. Hence, when Krushnaa Patil arrived at the school to talk about her mountaineering expeditions, she was greeted with a lot of anticipation and excitement. She was the youngest Indian women to summit Mount Everest in 2009, at the young age of 19. Later she summated the highest peak of every continent including Antarctica. She addressed the senior students of the school and showed them pictures from her various expeditions around the world. The children listened with rapt attention as she spoke of some of her adventures and the challenges that she faced as a climber. Krushnaa spoke of some of her ordeals while trying to find sponsors for her Mount Everest expedition. She also mentioned as to how the journey was a zero-impact one where all the team members carried down all the waste that they had generated, including biological waste. They carried tonnes of garbage down from Mount Everest. Following this inspiring narrative, she answered some of the questions that the children had about her adventures.

A second motivational talk was conducted by Varun Saini. A volunteer with the Druk School for over a month, he spoke to the seniors about MBA as a career. He told the children the various pros and cons of having an MBA degree along with the different job prospects after college. It wasn’t all work though; his presentation also gave the children a glimpse of college life at IIM Bangalore. The other part of his talk focused on a career in the armed forces. The students were told all about the different sections in the armed forces, and a career in the army both as an after school and an after college alternative.

September Fundraising Trek in Ladakh

30 May 2011
Posted in Stories

A sponsored trek in Ladakh is being arranged by Peaks Foundation for a small group of women wishing to face a challenge in aid of the Druk White Lotus School. The Gulap Kangri Challenge, Ladakh, 10-19 September, 2011.

If this fantastic opportunity to walk in the Himalayan peaks is not for you, perhaps a friend of yours may be interested so do pass on the details, or perhaps you would prefer to sponsor one of the group and let them do the physical work!

For more details go to: http://www.peaksfoundation.org/our_adventures/1_peak_1_week_challenge/ladakh/

If you may be interested, please e-mail Peaks Foundation directly at: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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