Funding the Future
CFL has become recognized as a creative experiment in alternative education. Many of the features of CFL – its small size, innovative methods in the classroom, its emphasis on collective responsibility and a focus on larger issues of life – have been noted and appreciated in educational circles. Our work in education has been possible and meaningful thanks to the goodwill of a global community of friends. We are grateful to all our friends around the world who have supported us so willingly over the years with money, time, books, equipment and encouragement.
We are in the process of raising funds for two purposes. One is to augment our infrastructure on campus. The other is to create a scholarship fund that will enable us to continue to cater to families seriously interested in a radically different approach to education. This document discusses the economics of running a small school, the details of our construction programme and our funding requirements.
We appeal to you now to help us fund the future of CFL.
Economics of a small school
From the beginning, we have had two main concerns:
- CFL should be affordable to all parents seriously exploring alternative education, and fees should never be a criterion for admission.
- CFL should remain small (currently we have 64 students enrolled) with a high teacher to student ratio (today we have 14 full-time and 6 part-time teachers).
The following features of CFL's finances are worth highlighting:
- Salaries are need-based, calling for commitment and openness from the staff. While salaries make up 70% of the expenditure, the average monthly salary for teachers in the year 2005-2006 is Rs 8,000 ($180).
- Fees are responsive to family income.
- More than a third of our students receive scholarships every year.
In spite of the odds (small numbers, low fees), CFL has survived all these years because of careful financial management and support from a global group of donors. Our endowment fund (corpus) has been painstakingly built over the last 15 years. Donors from all over the globe have contributed towards the corpus. The endowment fund enables us to maintain and upgrade infrastructure and buffers us from unforeseen expenses and emergencies. However, both increasing costs and our unwillingness to grow in size are straining our capacity to keep our fees affordable.
Fundraising
It is possible to provide quality education only when society at large supports educational endeavours. It is usually difficult for families to completely finance their children’s education. Worldwide, all non-commercial educational institutions receive external support for capital expenditure and to offer scholarships.
As part of our fundraising programme, we have created a group called the ‘Friends of CFL.’ This group has committed to make small but regular contributions to CFL over the next 3-5 years. In the academic year 2005 – 2006, we already have a commitment of Rs 2 lakhs ($4,500) from the ‘Friends of CFL.’
The Scholarship Fund
To ensure that CFL continues to be open to all interested parents, we wish to create a dedicated scholarship fund. The income from this fund will help us offer substantial reductions in fees to students who need financial support.
We need an amount of Rs 50 lakhs ($112,500) for the Scholarship Fund over the next three years.
Building programme
Centre For Learning is located on a 20 acre campus in Varadenahalli, a small village some 45 km from Bangalore City. Ancient rocks half as old as the earth surround the campus, and the elephant-rock of Savandurga is a stunning backdrop. The landscape is typical of rural Karnataka, with its undulating hills and pockets of lush green groves.
Having acquired the land in 1996, thanks to a global community of well wishers and donors, we completed the first phase of our construction programme in January 2000. In this phase, we built facilities that included the library, kitchen, laboratories and hostel accommodation. In the second phase [2000-2005], we completed an assembly hall, an art room and games facilities.
We are now planning a three-stage building programme to complete our construction plan on campus.
Stage I: The Middle School Building
After five years of being on our new campus, we have found that children from the age of 10 to 14, that is, our middle school, need to have a space they can identify as their own. Currently their day in school is fragmented due to their lack of a middle school building, and we need to respond to this lack.
Area: 500 square feet. Anticipated cost: Rs 5 lakhs ($11,250). Time frame: Feb 2006 – June 2006
Stage II and Stage III: Guest Accomodation and Staff Accomodation
Over the last five years, CFL has received a large number of visitors from all over the world. These guests contribute immensely to the culture and spirit of the school. Through them, our educational vision and experience are disseminated to other educators. We would like to offer simple yet comfortable accommodation for both short term and long term visitors.
Our current accommodation does not meet the needs of the increasing numbers of staff on campus. We need to respond to the changing CFL teacher profile keeping both the present and future in mind.
Stage II: Area: 1,250 square feet. Anticipated cost: Rs 10 lakhs. Time frame: May 2006 – Jan 2007
Stage III: Area: 1,250 square feet. Anticipated cost: Rs 10 lakhs. Time frame: Jan 2007 – Aug 2007
Total requirement to complete buildings: Rs 25 lakhs ($56, 250).
We have already raised Rs 13 lakhs ($29,250) for buildings.
We need Rs 12 lakhs ($27,000) to complete our building programme.
Other Infrastructure and Equipment
Apart from furnishing our new buildings, we are sorely in need of solar water heaters, solar power panels and laboratory equipment. Our van, which transports teachers and students for local trips and which is also used for purchases, needs to be replaced soon. A breakdown of our needs is as follows:
- Furniture for proposed buildings: Rs 2.5 lakhs ($5,625)
- Small van: Rs 6 lakhs ($13,500)
- Solar water heaters for buildings: Rs 1.5 lakhs ($3,375)
- Solar panels and equipment for lighting: Rs 4 lakhs ($9,000)
- Laboratory equipment: Rs 1 lakh ($2,250)
We have already raised Rs 5 lakhs ($11,250) towards equipment.
We need Rs 10 lakhs ($22,500) for other infrastructure and equipment.
Information for donors
Donors may specify the area where their contribution is to be used [construction/scholarship fund]. If there is a significant donation towards a building, we will be happy to dedicate the building to anyone the donor chooses.
You can send us a cheque from anywhere in the world. Make the cheque out to ‘Centre For Learning, Bangalore’ and mail it to us at:
Centre For Learning
545, Banagiri Nagar, Banashankari 3rd Stage
Bangalore 560 085, India
Centre For Learning is a charitable society registered under applicable laws in India. Donations to the society are exempt from Income Tax to the extent provided for under section 80G of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
Foreign donations can be wired directly to our bank account. Please write to us at funds@cfl.in for wiring instructions.
How can a Donor in the USA help CFL?
For several years, VSEI, a non-profit, tax- exempt organization in the USA, has included CFL among the organizations for whose projects VSEI can accept donations. Individuals in the USA who wish to help CFL may send their donations to VSEI at the address given below, with a note stating that the donation is for helping CFL projects. Cheques should be made out in the name of ‘Volunteers in Service to Education in India, Inc.’ Donations to VSEI are income-tax deductible in the USA.
VSEI, active since 1968, assists education related projects in different parts of India.
Postal Address: VSEI,
P.O. Box 713,
Hartford,
Connecticut 06142, USA
Email address: vsei@ntplx.net
Contact person: Dr. K. Raman | Telephone: (860) 233-5684