Shanti Bhavan Children's Project

The Shanti Bhavan Children's Project was founded in 1997 with the mission of breaking the destructive cycle of poverty through high quality education. Shanti Bhavan is a modern, hygienic, co-ed residential school that focuses on early intervention and in-depth, progressive schooling from age 4-18.

We serve the children of the poorest of the poor--the so called "untouchables" or dalits--those forgotten or ignored by the rest of society, who are destined to become rag-pickers, quarry laborers, or sex-workers, if not for the program's intervention. All of our children come from families that make less than $1 a day, and often they come from one-parent households.

Research and studies have shown that basic literacy and rudimentary education are insufficient in helping elevate children out of poverty; if the poorest of the poor are to succeed, they require a competitive and vigorous academic experience. There should be no glass ceiling for the poor when it comes to education: they are entitled to the same opportunities as the rest of society and Shanti Bhavan seeks to provide that through our program and with the assistance of our top-notch staff and volunteers.