Reflections on The Fabindia School 20th Anniversary Celebration

by Katherine Allen

December 1-2, 2012 

When I arrived with my family at William Bissell’s Sewari farm house near the school on Thursday evening, Nov 29^th via Udaipur,Sandeep Dutt, new Chairman and Executive Director of the BAT Board was there to greet us and join us for dinner.  This was my first time meeting Sandeep in person and we spent the following four days becoming good friends, enjoying the various 20^th anniversary events with each other’s company.  Immediately I was impressed by Sandeep’s dedication to the school and deep interest in getting to know everyone involved from top to bottom.

During his visits to the school over the past two months since he joined the BAT Board, and throughout his 5 days at the school during the 20^th celebration, Sandeep amazed me by his approach.  He took the time to personally sit with every possible stakeholder related to the school: faculty, staff, students, parents, local school board members, alumni, special guests and local politicians.  He made himself accessible to all with the utmost respect and appreciation for everyone’s opinions, trying to fully understand the past and current situation of the school.  He even went so far as visiting other schools in the area to understand the caliber of local talent and teaching methods. Our talks together about his findings and suggestions for improvement gave me great respect for his approach, insights and integrity.  My time with Sandeep left me with great hope for the future of the school.

The Fabindia School - 20 years and on

Ravi Kaimal is the Co-Founder of The Fabindia Schools at Bali with William Bissell. From the first stone to the first tree and the full campus he has toiled with BAT to take ahead the vision. Thanks to Ravi for the superb photos

Note from a happy Ex-student

Hi Sandeep,

This is Nitin Bhandari, an alumnus of Fabindia School from the very first batch (1998). You may recall meeting Nimendra who was also a part of my batch. I spent 4 years at the school from 1994 to 1998. I was fortunate enough to spend my most important formative years at the school and the time spent there has really helped me in all spheres of my life. The teachers at Fabindia have immense contribution towards building my creative, analytical, communication and people skills which are helping me excel at all my current and past roles.

Would surely wish to contribute more to the school through the alumni society.

Regards,

Nitin Bhandari,

Sr. Brand Manager

Bajaj Corp Ltd.

Celebrating 20 Years at Bali

The Fabindia School in Bali, Rajasthan. 20 years and the path breaking venture has given new hope to many young people. The first English medium school at Bali and now CBSE Affiliated, offers affordable quality education in the rural environment.

Thanks to Soumitro for making the photo shoot possible and bringing this alive for all of us!

Annual Day 2012

Annual day 2012:- The Fabindia school celebrated its annual day on 1&2 of December' 12. The occasion was graced by many dignitaries. A   galaxy of stars illuminated the occasion. The show was the result of hard work of many of many days. The stage  was erected by a  team of male teachers who not only climbed thorny trees, worked on the tall unsteady iron poles. They used science and maths calculations to construct a huge stage of 40 feet by 40 feet. It was a Herculean task to make it with so  little resources. To make canopy with silk at the height of 20 feet was daring and risky work as the teachers stood on unsteady ladders for hours to tie the cloth at both ends. Another team of teachers and students were engaged to  prepare  decorations. It was the work that took days but the outcome was beautiful and self satisfying for us.     

Twenty years at Bali

The Fabindia School hosted over 500 guests at the most beautiful ceremony held at the School. The Trustees, Friends, Parents and  long standing stalwarts were present.

Scintillating dances, Ali Baba and 40 Thieves, Court Jesters of the Dumb King and honours for the staff as well as students made the evening a very special one. We will share photos soon!

Building India from the heart

BAT runs The Fabindia Schools in rural Rajasthan in a district called Bali for children of local artisans. They are looking to upgrade the level of education to any other well recognized public school so these children can be merge into mainstream society on completion of their education. The team is looking for professional to assist in teacher training and development. The school is well established but the upgradation process very much at the nascent stage.

If anyone is interest in working in such a set up do get back to me and us. After going through a selection process the candidates will be provided rigorous training before they assume the professional role. The work will involve traveling between Delhi and Rajasthan with base in Delhi.

For further details about the project you can visit www.bateducation.com.

Sandeep Dutt
SD@EBD.in