1. We utilize only existing facilities, from orange grove plantation warehouses, to monasteries and convents, to government schools during after hours there-by requiring no capital or infrastructure expenses.
2. FreeSchools is volunteer-based. With only one paid part-time administrator and most overhead costs donated through in-kind support, funds can be channelled directly to field programs.
   
   $15 provides each child with schooling and supplies, a set of clothes and a nutritious meal each day for a year.

How many schools does FreeSchools support?

1. There are presently 45 FreeSchools in operation serving more than 3000 children and expanding rapidly. 
2. 29 schools in the most rural and desperate state of Bihar, India
3. 16 schools throughout the isolated tribal villages and refugee settlements of Thailand

Why does FreeSchools focus so much on girls?

1. FreeSchools gives priority, but not exclusivity to women and girls. So far we have not had to turn anyone away. However, the sad fact is that women face many barriers to education. They often skip childhood, burdened by enforced labour, sibling care and marriage as young as age 10. Three times as many girls as boys die from malnutrition and even murder. Many are sold into prostitution or bonded labour to ease the family’s hardships. Education is the KEY to providing a better future not just for the girls themselves, but for their families as well.

What does FreeSchools teach?

1. Along with basic literacy skills, FreeSchools empowers the teachers and the local community to determine the curriculum, as each village has different needs and priorities. Where the children and their families are refugees, the focus is learning the language of their new country. Where malnutrition and AIDS is prevalent, the focus is on hygiene and health protection. Basic English is taught in Bihar, but better English teachers are needed  Teachers share their own knowledge of crafts and income-producing skills such as tailoring, embroidery and basket weaving.  Very old computers are in some of the convent schools but there is limited access and this technology needs updating.  Laptops are needed and generators to charge them.  There is only two hours of electricity per day in Bihar.

Who teaches at FreeSchools?

1. FreeSchools invests generously in teachers by paying a fair wage that may supplement another teaching position or stand alone. Only respected women teachers are hired to ensure the safety of the children. They are Hindu, Muslim and Christian in India and Buddhist in Thailand.  Some are married, some are handicapped (polio victims) and won't be married. All have families that depend on their support. Teachers have the highest status in the village and are truly loved and honoured by the children. They are hired by our charitable community partner and many have excellent teacher training. However, if a teacher is not available, the most educated person in the village is asked. Several young women, secondary school graduates, are training as teachers.

Why don’t the children go to a “regular” school?

1. In Thailand, indigenous hill tribes and refugees from Myanmar survive as reliable low paid help in the orange groves - a major industry in Thailand. They do not have official Thai citizenship. That means their children do not have access to education and their travel is restricted. Some government teachers permit a few indigenous children to attend their classes on a casual basis. FreeSchools operates with government cooperation and our schools are drawing attention to the need. We hope the government schools will eventually accommodate these children making FreeSchools unnecessary.
   The situation in India is very different. While the central government provides some funding for education in rural areas in Bihar, rampant corruption and teacher absenteeism ensure the service never gets delivered to the villages. According to the World Bank 2005 report on Development in Bihar, "Rural poverty is associated with limited access to land and livestock, poor education and health care. Most of the poor are landless or near landless, owning lower quality livestock and are poorly educated (80% of the bottom quintile household heads have no education)." Lower castes and Muslims are three times as likely to be dirt poor as upper castes. Without FreeSchools, the children are trapped in a cycle of ignorance and poverty. Since so many children are bright and enthusiastic, FreeSchools can give them a fighting chance.