Convincing families in rural India to educate girls can be a difficult task, even when those families are wealthy. For families in underprivileged areas, such as those where RDF operates, this task is even more difficult as parents often feel they can only spare enough money to educate one child and the son takes precedence. However, from its very inception RDF has emphasized the importance of equal access to education amongst boys and girls.
To help ensure an even ratio of male and female students, we offer a lower tuition fee to girls. Additionally, if the class strength for girls is not reaching 50%, RDF teachers travel to the surrounding villages, visiting families and explaining to them the importance of educating their daughters as well as their sons. Convincing families to educate their daughters was one of the biggest challenges when RDF opened our first school in 1996. These days the class ratios range from 44 percent to 52 percent girls.
