The Tibetan Sunday School, an educational program of TCNYNJ was founded in 1997 by its members. The mission of this School is to assist NY Tibetan children to learn their Language, History, Religion and Cultural Heritage and instill in them basic values of compassion, humility, respect, and nationalism. One of the TCNYNJ board members, the Chair of Education Committee, is entrusted with the responsibility to ensure smooth functioning of the school and other educational programs. The program coordinator, a staff of TCNYNJ runs the Tibetan Sunday School with the help of dedicated and committed staff members.
Objectives:
• Read, write and comprehend the Tibetan text at the grade level
• Speak Tibetan with fluency
• understand and become knowledgeable about basic Tibetan history, religion, and cultural practices as contained in the textbooks
• Become competent in Tibetan performing arts
• Develop and demonstrate unique Tibetan cultural values like compassion, humility, and respect.
School Year and Days:
1. The school year consists of 11 months: September (first Saturday) to July (last Saturday) of the following year. The month of August is left for the parents for camping or visiting other places.
2. School operates for 4 hours every Sunday from 9:00 Am to 1:00 PM.
3. The school year is divided into two sessions. The First Session starts on September first Saturday to February last Saturday and the Second Session from March first Saturday to July last Saturday.
Enrollment conditions:
Currently there are about 300 students enrolled in the school for the school year 2016-17. Families who want to enroll their child/children should meet the following conditions:
1. The child must be 5 years old as of August 31st of the calendar year or older.
2. Child’s parent(s) must be TCNYNJ member/s in good standing.
3. Child’s parent(s) must be DhanglangChatrelDebchung (Tibetan Green Book) holder/s.
Enrollment Date:
• Applications for the following school year are accepted from August 1 to August 15 with an enrolment fee of $50:00 per child.
• Applications received between August 16 and August 31 will be accepted with a late fee of $ 25.00 per child.
• No applications will be accepted for the coming school year after August 31 deadline.
• Families that have moved/immigrated to New York / New Jersey recently can enroll their child/children anytime during the school year paying of $10:00 per child.
Curriculum:
Syllabus for each grade level consists of the textbooks (adapted version) prescribed by Department of Education, Central Tibetan Administration in Exile, Dharamsala. Supplementary reading materials collected from other sources including Tibetan Children’s Village, Dharamsala are also used.