Raise the Roof for Preschoolers in Kyrgyzstan!
Our Mission: Build a Preschool
In the remote but beautiful region of Toktogul, Kyrgyzstan, many students are unable to attend preschool. They often live in remote villages with limited access, their families often cannot afford to pay the tuition that public preschools charge — or there is simply no space in the already overcrowded preschools that exist. That’s why Ratbu Satarova (my Peace Corps counterpart) and myself (a returned Peace Corps Volunteer who now works as a special education teacher) want to build a preschool, one that is unique in the region for its cross cultural emphasis, accessibility, inclusivity, safe staffing ratios, and high standard of instruction. 
Our Vision:
Provide high quality instruction to rural students. Children from ages 3-6 are at a critical stage of development where they are learning the important social and emotional skills that will be the foundation for successful learning behaviors for the rest of their lives. Currently, in Toktogul, the quality of the existing preschools is quite low because, on average, one teacher and one assistant serve the needs of 50-60 children in a space meant for 25-30. Children are cramped and neglected while teachers are burnt out and overworked. Our preschool will have a maximum of 25 students per class, allowing the teacher and assistant to be more effective in their work. In addition, we will provide instruction that weaves evidence-based practices from the Montessori model together with the Kyrgyz National Standards for early childhood education, ensuring that our preschool will be a place where children have a high quality and culturally sensitive place to learn and grow.
Teach tolerance and inclusivity. Our student population will include kids who are routinely excluded in Kyrgyzstan (and around the world): kids with disabilities will learn alongside typically developing kids. Our preschool will be the first in the region to offer slots to students with disabilities. Students with disabilities often simply do not attend school because they are either physically unable to access the building or are not provided the basic accommodations they need to access lessons. Bilim Nuskasy, the non-profit under which our preschool will operate, has had a special focus on students with disabilities. Our existing resource room was the very first (and only) building in the region specifically designed to be wheelchair accessible. Sarah, a certified special education teacher, will work with teachers to provide training on how to instruct and include kids that are not typically developing. Our teachers, through skilled instruction and inclusive practices, will model for students the idea that all humans have inherent value and worth, that we all have something to learn from each other.
Create global citizens. Our students will be exposed to three world languages and meet volunteer teachers from around the world. Students at the preschool will benefit from early exposure to English and cross cultural exchange with volunteer teachers from outside of Kyrgyzstan. In addition, local teachers at the preschool will be fluent in both Kyrgyz (the native language of most people living in the Toktogul region) and Russian (the lingua franca of Kyrgyzstan, spoken in most places of business and universities) and will provide instruction in both languages to better prepare students for life in an increasingly globalized world.
Develop compassionate people. Our school will be built in honor of Elvira Eshalieva, Ratbu’s daughter, who died from stage four stomach cancer several weeks after the birth of her son. Elvira worked tirelessly to make her community a better place, assisting in every youth leadership project that Ratbu organized. Even when she was living abroad, she contributed financially to projects being organized in Toktogul, such as making Rabu’s resource room wheelchair accessible. Elvira’s dedication to her community helped improve it in very tangible ways that can still be seen and felt, and this preschool will be an extension of her legacy. Because this preschool was created as a way to honor Elvira, there will be several slots held for students who have a parent or guardian affected by cancer. In addition to the emotional toll, cancer can take a heavy financial toll on families, which is why we will offer these students a 50% tuition reduction. Our preschool will provide a safe place and a rich education for children living with the grief and stress that cancer can bring into their lives. Our other students will learn empathy and compassion as they play side-by-side with these peers who have experienced such a huge and early trauma.
Our Goals:
Financial accessibility. Because there is very little state funding for preschools, families in Kyrgyzstan must pay for public preschool programs, which prevents many students from attending. Our preschool would also need to charge tuition to cover teacher salaries and operating costs, just as public schools do; however, each year there would be a limited number of slots held for crowd-funded scholarship students. Furthermore, our preschool would operate under Bilim Nuskasy as a non-profit organization, charging only as much tuition as we need to cover operating expenses, making it a very affordable option for families.
Geographic accessibility. The preschool will be located right off of the Osh-Bishkek highway, which is the main road that runs through the Toktogul region. Many taxis and mini-buses operate from small villages to this main road, making the preschool accessible, even for families that live in remote parts of the region.
Ongoing teacher training. Ratbu is one of the most renowned English teachers in the region and has conducted extensive teacher trainings all over the region. As such, she will be able to hire the best local teachers and provide continuing education and training to them as they work in the preschool.
Our Progress:
The good news is that we’ve already made a lot of progress! People in Toktogul are excited to see this school come to fruition and Ratbu and her family have worked tirelessly to gather the resources they can to get started on the project. Here's what we already have:
Purchased land and a small structure $15,000
Built fencing $5,000
Planted fruit trees $1,000
Built a running water system $800
Building a foundation and basement (currently in process) $15,000
Volunteers to help dig the basement and lay the foundation $1,500
TOTAL COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTION: $38,300
Not to mention, we also have these things, which are hard to put a price on:
The best teachers in the region ready to staff the school
International volunteers ready to work in the first few seasons
Families that really want their kids to attend this school
(Pictured above: Running water installed by community volunteers.)
(Pictured above: Fruit trees growing healthy and strong!)
(Pictured above: Fencing purchased and installed by Ratbu and her family.)
(Pictured above: Early phases of construction on the ground floor and foundation.)
(Pictured above: Workers pour concrete for the ground floor with the Kyrgyz foothills in the background.)
Our world is whatever the next generations make it. If you want to impact the world, help us build a school that will teach children to have empathy and compassion, that will help children develop the social emotional skills they need for success in life, that makes early childhood education a resource that is available to all; help us build a school that may one day influence how other schools are built. We need schools like this, across the world.
If you want to help, here’s where you come in.
Our goal in this GoFundMe campaign is to raise enough money to build walls and a roof onto the foundation that is currently under construction. To complete this part of the construction we need $25,000.
We are currently applying to major international grants. However, such granting agencies want to see that there is community buy-in. Building the walls and roof through crowd-funded donations will prove to these agencies that we are serious and have a broad base of support, not only from the local community (which has already supplied land, fencing, the foundation, and landscaping, in addition to many volunteer hours) but also from the international community. Your show of support will greatly increase our chance of securing the additional funding we will need.
Here's an overview of our budget:
Community Contribution of Land and Construction (already donated) $38,300
GoFundMe Contribution of Construction of Walls and Ceiling $25,000
Remaining Construction (provided by an international grant)
Construction of interior walls and finishing $50,000
Furniture and Toys $24,000
Playgrounds $23,000
Canteen Equipment $4,500
TOTAL COST OF PRESCHOOL: $159,800
Who We Are
Ratbu Satarova and Sarah Silverman are co-founders of the non-profit organization Bilim Nuskasy (roughly translated as "learning's treasure" in Kyrgyz), which works to bring educational opportunities to all students and teachers living in the remote regions of Kyrgyzstan. They met in 2009 through the Peace Corps, and twelve years later, they continue to work together towards Bilim Nuskasy’s mission. Ratbu, with help from other organizations and Peace Corps Volunteers, has organized 13 different community projects over the past 12 years to improve educational opportunities for teachers and students of Toktogul, including:
2009 - FORUM Teacher’s Training
2010 - PEPFAR Grant for Health Education (with Peter Clark, PCV)
2010 - Book Grant from Pearson (partnered with Heather Pecora and Rachel Silverman)
2010 - Glasses for Teachers and Students (partnered with Lion’s Club and Rachel Silverman)
2011 - SPA Grant for Resource Room Furniture, Materials, and Technology (with Peter Clark, PCV)
2011 - TEA Grant for Children With Disabilities Leadership Workshop
2012 - TEA Grant for Children With Disabilities Technology Workshop
2012-2013 - Crowdfunded Resource Room Construction (with Peter Clark, PCV)
2013 - Story Pirates Project for Youth with Disabilities (with Peter Clark, PCV)
2014 - Crowdfunded Project to install a wheelchair ramp to the resource room (with Britta Seiffert and Max Martini, PCVs)
2014 - GLOW/TOBE Leadership and Gender Equality Youth Summer Camp (with Britta Seiffert and Max Martini, PCVs)
2013-2015 - ACCESS Project for low-income students providing enhanced English classes and service learning experience
2017 - Youth With Possibilities - College and Career Readiness Workshop for Youth With Disabilities
Sarah currently works as a special education teacher in Arizona. She relies on the lessons learned from Ratbu in the Peace Corps and after to make service learning projects a centerpiece of her curriculum. Ratbu's work as a teacher and community organizer has benefited her community for the past 20 years as she has worked to bring improvements to education across the region. Every single dollar donated (other than the fees that GoFundMe charges) will go directly to the construction of this preschool, a vital community resource. Ratbu's impeccable reputation within her community as well as her track record of grant administration within the international aid community sets her apart as someone who works with integrity for the benefit of her community. Please help Ratbu and her community bring to life this dream of an accessible, cross-cultural, and high quality preschool for the children of Toktogul.
Thank you! Chong rahmat!