This report will provide our donors and supporters with an update of the state of affairs at our school and orphanage in Kutra. We would like to express our gratitude, primarily on behalf of the children and staff at The Learning Tree Foundation, for your generous support and encouragement.

Mike Keylock’s visit to the school in October 2018

My visit took place between 16th – 22rd October 2018. There are at present 217 children, 50 of which are resident, without any parental support. Those with parents come from the surrounding villages and the parents contribute towards the cost of their children’s education often in the form of food donations. Nine of the older students attend colleges of further education in the area and remain living in the school compound.

I was welcomed at the station in Roukela by the head of the institution Fransisca, along with Maria and Alok, one of the older boys. All seems well and I am very much looking forward to meeting the kids on the 17th.

Fransisca informed me that the government is assuming more responsibility for financing the children’s development. This is a welcome move. It secures the school and lends it much credibility. The school is far from being ‘government-run’ and therefore continues to require additional finances and support.

Over time the school has considerably improved the quality of its care and education. The number of children has increased from 187 in 2017 to 217 in 2018. This is partly to do with the poor state of the Indian State School system leading to parents looking for a better education. Interestingly children found on the streets are also increasingly being brought to the school by the authorities which is a tribute to the education offered by our school! The school’s reputation has also been enhanced as the Government’s educational audits conducted over the past four years have been extremely positive. The auditors have found that both the teaching and learning at the school and the overall health profile of the students is commendable.

Since my visit last year, thirteen new children have found a home at TLTF. Some of the parents of these children have died in accidents, others are in prison.

The state authorities (police and social services) have rescued 43 children from the streets or child labour situations. Thirty children have been reunited with their biological families through the school. The remaining13 children are now experiencing the love and affection of all at the school.

The primary use to which the donations of FOTLTF e. V. have been put has been building and renovation. Two buildings that were in a dilapidated state have been completely renovated. In addition to this, one new building has been constructed and now houses a computer room and an additional classroom. The fundaments of two of the recently erected building are strong enough to support an upper floor. This will be one of our targets for the coming year.

Plans for 2019

Aside from construction there are further plans for the year 2019. We are considering an art festival and workshop early in the year. We have contacts to a professional dancer and a renowned artist, who are both very interested in working with the children.

Nomi, our very active friend in Delhi, has made contact with a young professional dancer, Lalit Khatana, who is also a talented weaver, specialising in woven chairs and tables. Weaving was a traditional skill amongst the Adivasis or tribals , but one that they are losing due to modernization. Interestingly, all over India the demand for traditional craft is once again on the rise and it is our intention to have Lalit visit the school in January to hold a weaving course and give the children access to his traditional skills.

Lalit is a talented dancer and has performed in India and abroad. He will be holding dance classes with the children which the school is excited about as the children regularly participate in dance competitions and are eager to improve their performance skills! I am convinced that the kids would love this as they are all eager dancers. We are also looking at the possibility of Sankha Bannerjee, our artist friend from Kolkatta, coming to Kutra at the same time to give the kids some art classes. We could thus have a mini arts festival: dancing painting, drawing and indigenous tribal weaving.

Travel / Study Visit

Following on from the very successful visit to Bhubaneswar and Puri in 2017 (where all older pupils and teachers saw the sea for the very first tine – quite an experience!), the younger children, who were not able to go on the trip, have now expressed considerable interest in going on a similar outing. The teachers and others at the school have suggested Kolkatta as a favoured destination. As it happens our friend, Sankha Banerjee, an artist who has already visited the school in Kutra, is teaching in Kolkatta,. He has expressed a keenness to help us organize such a trip. He has also informed us that his students are most interested in carrying out an art project with TLTF.

Logistics and funding will need to be discussed in detail. If the trip is half as successful as the one to Puri, it will be immensely worthwhile. The children gained in so many ways from travelling out of Kutra, a first step to broadening their horizons. They visited a very professionally organized school for tribal children, saw the sights and temples that Puri offers and felt the excitement that comes from experiencing the sea for the first time. These are lasting impressions and a valuable step in moving them into the world at large and indeed, into the 21st century by broadening their horizons and motivating them academically and otherwise.

It was also a memorable trip for me, personally, as I was able to spend time getting to know individual pupils. The bonding was evident when I visited the school on 17th October, a very pleasurable and enjoyable way to spend one’s birthday!

Current focus:

Toilet facilities and dormitories are still inadequate and need to be built in the near future. The local district authority is financing a fence around the school to increase safety for the children. CCTV has also been installed. The improved conditions have enhanced the level of trust that the local government has in the school.

Such trust is extremely welcome as it will bring more local funding and support to this vibrant school that has transformed over the last few years promising to make its mark in rural Orissa where there are very few educational institutions that offer quality care and education.

I would like to thank Fransisca and her wonderful staff for the sterling work being done. It is so rewarding to see how happy the children are and how much progress they are making. This is due to the dedication and hard work of a great teaching team.

Many thanks also, to all donors and supporters in India, Germany and the UK. A special “thank you” to Nomi Unikrishnan in Dehli for her help, ideas and support.

Mike Keylock
Hohenhain, 27.10.2018