Winter Break Has Arrived!
Thank you for your loyal support of the Siddhartha School Partnership. Given the unprecedented challenges of this year, your gift is especially meaningful. I am happy to report that we have raised over $172,000 for the Fund for Teachers this past month. That is enough to guarantee our teachers’ salaries throughout 2021. Thank you so much for your help in making that happen!
Meanwhile, as the temperature drops in Ladakh, our teachers and students gather indoors with friends and family. Winter break has begun at the school. It is a time to rest, rejuvenate, and prepare for the New Year.
Principal Dechen Wangmo has begun meeting regularly with our social and emotional learning (SEL) specialists, Sophie Langri and Danielle Marqui, to strategize on how to bring SEL into the homes of our students when remote classes resume in March. Together, they are generating new ways of engaging our Siddhartha School families in this important curriculum.
Sophie and Danielle provide valuable perspective and experiences from their current work integrating SEL principles into Canadian public-school classrooms. Principal Dechen will lead our teachers in delivering these lessons to the students and their families. I have joined these WhatsApp video calls, and I am impressed by the dedication and ingenuity of these educators. Their work (supported by a donor) will allow Siddhartha School to continue to deliver high-quality, culturally mindful curriculum throughout the pandemic and beyond.
If you haven’t seen it yet, watch Sophie Langri present their exciting work at the Siddhartha School to His Holiness the Dalai Lama below.
Back here in the USA, we look forward to bringing you updates and information on the development of our pioneering SEL program and the many other exciting things that will happen at the Siddhartha School in 2021. Please do stay tuned and stay in touch.
On behalf of the Siddhartha School Partnership, I wish you and your family peace, love, and prosperity in the New Year.
Warm regards,
Alex Stigliano
Executive Director
Siddhartha School Partnership
