LIFE VISION ACADEMY

At Life Vision Academy, students not only receive a basic education, but they are also educated about society, the environment, how to think critically, and how to respect one another. We also encourage our students to try a variety of extracurricular activities that will help them apply their education throughout their lives: computer skills, cooking, photography, trekking, making handicrafts, etc. In the home that is Life Vision Academy, CYF is providing direct support to children who are in need and building a stronger generation of Nepali youth.

Our school caters to children who come from economically challenged families, children with single parents, and children of migrant workers. Life Vision Academy plays a vital role in connecting the gap between these families and their children's right to education. We believe that every child should be able to access quality education, regardless of their socioeconomic status.

OUR PEDAGOGY

We take pride in our "out of the box" curriculum that encourages our children to explore, create and learn from their environment. Unlike most schools in our region, we encourage critical thinking, creativity, and self-expression. We teach our kids how to think instead of what to think. We encourage them to be the best versions of themselves and guide them as they grow into confident leaders.

LVA welcomes children from Pre-K through Class 10, which is the end of Nepal's secondary education. We use recreation as a main tool to educate. We incorporate activities like poetry, drama, music, breakdancing and photography classes, encouraging the children to love school and to embrace creativity. We also encourage the kids to embrace nature and live actively through sports, hiking, and our Outdoor Learning Space.

The LVA pedagogy also prioritizes the deconstruction of traditional, patriarchal gender roles. Staff members are specifically selected and trained for their ability and commitment to valuing gender equality and teaching children to unlearn repressive norms.

OUR HISTORY

Prema Zimba founded LVA in 1997 for underprivileged children after a long successful career of education management and running an elite boarding school. After Haushala Thapa rescued 14 children from an abusive orphanage in 2008, she looked everywhere for a school that would take them in. Prema accepted them with open arms, under one condition: Haushala just needed to bring food for them. Haushala then founded CYF to sustainably fundraise for these children and others like them, and CYF officially became the sole funder of Life Vision Academy.

At the time, LVA was one small school-building with a very small student body. In 2013, LVA moved its 37 kids to a larger school facility, rented in Bode, Bhaktapur. But the rent was skyrocketing, the strict landlord would lock our kids out of school, and our dormitory was destroyed in the 2015 earthquakes. Our dream was to build a safe, sustainable home on our own plot of land. 

Thanks to Lopoca Austria, in 2016 CYF was able to build the new Life Vision Academy, a state-of-the-art boarding school facility constructed from scratch. Our campus currently accommodates 150 students, has 3 main buildings, sports areas, an organic garden, an art workshop space, and a unique amphitheaterical outdoor learning space. The following photos shows our evolution from our first small rental, to our second bigger rental and to our forever home!