Rural Education Center
A school free of fear, full of color and joy inside a beautiful setting.
A learning-ladder that enables self-paced individual learning.
Promote community and activity-based learning through craft, games, song and drama.
Multi-grade, multi-level teaching and learning catered to individual attention to a child.
Integrate local culture and values of conservation into the curriculum;
Encourage teachers to design creative teaching & learning material.
Multiple satellite schools in nearby villages to increase access and attendance. Facilities for physical activity and sports.
Rural Health Center
Provide primary level diagnostic and curative health services.
Provide a comprehensive eye care program.
Provide education on various aspects of health - infectious disease, AIDS, substance abuse (esp alcoholism) and the importance of nourishment to mothers and their children.
Train community health workers who would be able to provide basic first-aid and monitor the health of those undergoing treatment and report serious illnesses.
Landscapes and Trees of Rishi Valley
The “Trees of Rishi Valley” is a project that was conceived in the year 2017, when a small group of senior students roamed the school campus identifying plants. The group was called PhytoClub, an activity that lasted an hour every Saturday. When it came to documenting the observations, it seemed appropriate to record them digitally. Something more audacious emerged from this initial effort, which expanded to become the “Landscapes and Trees of Rishi Valley” project.
Three years of field studies by botanists, environmentalists and enthusiastic amateurs resulted in cataloguing 136 woodlands species, 16 scrublands species, 12 drylands species of trees and large shrubs from around the valley, and 29 species of xerophytic herbaceous species on the Duranta and Asthachal hills. In addition, thematic sections have been included describing the Senior School, Big Banyan Tree, Small Banyan Tree, Bio-diversity Park, Bodi Konda, and the planned bio-diversity around the Krishna-Cauvery Hostels.
The book also has introductory chapters on how the school was established (using archived text and photographs, both dating back to 1926), and the history and geology of the region.
One of the highlights of the book is a chapter on the 12-year phenological study conducted by research scholars on 20 tree and shrub species, documenting in detail the annual cycle of growth, flowering, fruiting, dispersal, etc. Though premature at this stage, the data collected is meant to be correlated with abiotic factors in order to determine the long-term effects of a changing climate.
The book is being designed by Kadambari Misra (ISC 1999), and the editing is simultaneously underway with in-house expertise. The book will be printed by Asia’s premier printing press, Pragati Offset in Hyderabad. The total cost of this project is INR 12 lakhs.
It is hoped that the book will be in print by the end of this year. Being very Rishi Valley-centric, the book will have limited readership, restricted to past and present students, their parents, staff, visitors, and well-wishers of the school, etc.
Campus Rainwater Harvesting System
The objective of this project is to install a network of channels for catchment of rainwater runoff from 4 pairs of hostels to enable re-use.
Completed Fundraising Campaigns
Hoopoe House Fund
In the memory of Kadambari Badami Vamanan, who spent her formative years at RV and passed away at a young age, we seek to raise funds for the ‘Rishi Valley Centre for Studies in Ecology’. This two-story structure will take the place of ‘Hoopoe House’, the home of the late Rangaswamy Sir who co-authored the book on birds of RV and started the Bird Studies Programme that is hosted at Rishi Valley. Hoopoe House currently serves as a base for a field studies programme of research on fauna, with PhD students (from NCBS Bangalore) and their assistants spending several months on campus to conduct their research (on rock lizards, mosquitoes and birds, among other creatures). The school has also been hosting a long-term research project on the effects of climate change on the fruiting and flowering of trees. The proposed Centre will encompass all these ecological and environmental projects on campus. It will continue to include a residential space for visiting researchers, but will also host the rich archive of materials that belonged to Rangaswamy Sir, and possibly a museum and a meeting space. The school estimates a cost of 25 lakh rupees towards building this new Centre.
Child and Adolescent Care
The objective of this initiative is to help normal healthy development in children from economically disadvantaged families.
Provide subsidized/free medical aid to children.
Provide nutritional supplements as and when needed to children.
RV Hospital
The hospital has been an RV fixture over several decades. In November 2015, the heavy rains on-campus (which are usually a blessing) created visible signs of wear and distress causing it to be vacated. The school authorities hence decided to pull down the building and build a two-floor structure. The ground floor (1692 sq. ft.) will have a consulting room, emergency room and dispensary, while the upper floor (1165 sq. ft.) will provide a two-bedroom residence for the medical doctor. In the words of Dr. Kumaraswamy (former RV principal): “I urge the alumni to help generously to fund this project since this new building plan would go a long way in helping the school and greatly impact the broader community.” The ISC '88 batch has taken ownership of the fundraising and urges all of you to contribute.
Letter from Dr. Kumaraswamy