RDF Kalleda School

Village: Kalleda Mandal: Parvatagiri District: Warangal Established: 1996 No. of classes: Nursery – 10th Total no. of students: 567; 293 boys, 274 girls

Kalleda is RDF’s flagship school. Housed in the former estate of the Errabelli family, the school combines high academic standards with extra-curricular activities such as sports, cultural activities and a working farm.

The school exemplifies RDF’s emphasis on preparing students for the modern workplace while respecting their cultural heritage. Students are farming paddy vegetables with organic fertilizers, and the resulting crops are used for their mid-day meals. On the same campus, a computer lab lets rural student children learn the Internet and computer skills vital for modern careers.

Kalleda’s success is seen in the national, state and district competitions where they are winning awards at national, state and district level in a wide range of events which include – athletics, yoga, kho kho and kabbadi. Students also recently won second  place in a district level science exhibition.

RDF Matendla School

Village: Matendla Mandal: Chinnakodur District: Medak Established: 1998 No. of classes: Nursery – 10th Total no. of students: 320; 174 boys, 146 girls

Matendla was the first RDF school to be built outside the Warangal district. In a decade, it has grown from a small primary school “under the trees” to a new building offering up to 10th grade instruction. Matendla’s headmaster N. Vishnu Murthy is coordinator for all five RDF schools.

The school is proud of its sporting achievements – four girl students have been selected to participate in – Kabaddi, Kho Kho, volley ball and atheletics – at district level. Some students have gone on to participate in basket ball and kho kho at the more competitive state level. Four former students have been selected to attend specialist sports schools.

Alumni from the school are involved in a special programme sponsored by the Indian government which is working with women in the village to alleviate female adult literacy.

RDF Redlawada School

Village: Redlawada Mandal: Nekonda District: Warangal Established: 2005 No. of classes: Nursery – 7th Total no. of students: 190; 87 boys, 103 girls

Redlawada is proud it’s been able to reduce the cost of its midday meal by $6 USD a week. Students and staff are making good use of their newly acquired garden, which supplies tomatoes, gourds and greens for their own meals while all remaining vegetables are sold to other RDF schools. Nothing is ever wasted. Ash from the wood-burning fire that cooks their meals is used to fertilize the soil.

Pooja Saxena from Transgenez is helping the science, maths, and English departments make their lessons more engaging and relevant for the students.

Cognizant Foundation has generously donated a library consisting of academic and non academic books to enrich students’ reading experience. The teachers are also beginning to use these new books as reference material to enhance their lessons. Cognizant has also donated to build new rooms and improve the computer department.Headmaster K. Mallikarjun estimates that out of a total school population of 190, a few students are destined for university admission — and ultimately, top jobs. Right now, the brightest students are encouraged to work alongside average ones in order to motivate good learning habits.

RDF Wadlakonda School

Village: Wadlakonda Mandal: Parvatagiri District: Warangal Established: 2006 No. of classes: Nursery – 8th Total no. of students: 188; 83 boys, 105 girls

Wadlakonda school is currently being held at a dilapidated former estate. With some parts of the building unsound, classes are taking place outside. But the good news is an area of land has been purchased and construction of a new building is scheduled for 2011-2012.

The school is undergoing a period of change with the arrival of a new headmaster and a new English teacher. There’s a new focus on cultural studies — singing, dancing and playing the traditional dappu drums, which has been embraced by students of all ages. (Dappu is the most common form of accompaniment for folk performances in the state of Andra Pradesh).

RDF Narsimpalli School

Village: Narsimpalli Mandal: Thadimarri District: Anantapur Established: 2006 No. of classes: Nursery – 8th Total no. of students: 266; 152 boys, 114 girls

Narsimpalli is the newest and most rapidly growing RDF school. It is the first school to transfer to a full English curriculum, largely as a result of pressure from the community, eager to equip their children with language skills that will give them the best opportunities in life.

The school farming plans are progressing well,  the school has received sapota, mango and guava plants for the orchard.  Ground leveling work planned in 2011  is over, but rolling out is still on going. Mr. J.V. Ramudu and Mr. Manchoo Ferror will visit the school next work to assess progress. RDF is committed to growing the young school, recently investing to improve facilities such as toilets.

RDF Vanitha Achuta Pai Vidyalaya Junior College

Village: Kalleda Mandal: Parvatagiri District: Warangal Established: 2007 Courses offered: MPC, BPC, CEC Total no. of students: 351; 190 boys, 161 girls

The Junior College is best known for its excellence in archery, after one of its former students  shot to fame in the 2007 Asian Junior Championships and the 2008 Beijing Olympics  Students can be seen practising their archery skills in the grounds in the early morning and later afternoon, before and after classes and when dusk falls they retire inside to clean and sharpen their arrows to ensure they remain in tip-top condition.  Their perseverance pays dividends because students win regular awards at both state and national events.  The college coach is Mr. Prabir Das from Calcutta. He started coaching in 1975 and is a national champion has coached Dola Benarji  represented India in 2004,2008 and Rahul Benarji who played in Commonwealth Games and  Asian Games last year. Prabirdas joined RDF in July 22nd.2003.

This is an English and Telugu medium college which attracts students from the surrounding districts. Students played an active role in the appointment last year ( 2010) of a new headmaster – Mr A Shankar, previously a lecturer and principal in the state capital, Hyderabad. He has a Masters degree in zoology, a post graduate diploma in English language teaching and is in his final year of an MA in English literature.

The fifteen lecturers at the College are all post-graduates. Courses offered  include specializations in MPC (Maths, Physics, Chemistry), BPC (Biology, Physics, Chemistry) and CEC (Civics, Economics, Commerce).

The College is proud of its contact with parents who are kept informed about their children’s progress  through both telephone and text messaging.

Washington University in St Louis started the Village India Program with the Junior College in 2007, which takes place every summer when students from Wash U come and teach extra-curricular courses such as journalism, photo-blogging, and interview skills.