Tsharka Tibetan Elem/Middle School, Dolpo, Nepal

Despite the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Tsharka School opened on time at the beginning of May 2020. Veteran teacher Thupten went up to Chharka in late April to join Tse-wangmo and Choesang to open the school and resume classes. In addition to our three experienced local teachers, we hired a fourth teacher from the village temporarily. The temporary teacher is a young man from Chharka who has studied in Kathmandu. 

The school operated at near-full capacity for just over one month, until the end of the first week in June. Then the Mayor of the Municipality that includes the village of Tsharka ordered that the school be shut, because an active case of COVID-19 had been discovered in the Municipality. The case was in a part of the Municipality several days’ walk from Tsharka. Now that two weeks have passed, and there is no sign of infection in Tsharka, we hope that the Mayor will allow the school to reopen soon. 

Our School Coordinator Samdup Tsering is currently in Kathmandu endeavoring to purchase educational materials and other materials for the ongoing school building project. He has been waiting for the country to reopen but due to the persistently increasing number of infected cases, the lockdown has been extended and as yet, he has not been able to purchase the materials.

Although operating Tsharka Elementary School is proving exceptionally difficult this year, the teachers ICDF supports are working hard and creatively to ensure our students’ continued progress.