Of the 4331 girls (49% of student body) at Isha Vidhya, 2810 (65% of the girls) study on scholarships. Our supportive initiatives foster their academic excellence, and fewer adolescent girls at Isha Vidhya drop out compared to the national average in rural India.

We inspire girl students to celebrate learning every day with opportunities that help them hone dormant skills. Hear from Isha Vidhya’s girl students and their teachers as they recount the students’ accomplishments.

“During one Arduino project in the Atal Tinkering Lab (ATL), just before the presentation, the circuit stopped working, and I carefully troubleshot to fix the issue in time. It was challenging, but finding the solution was a confidence booster.”

Shambhavi’s teacher says that despite being novices at the ATL, girl students adapt skillfully and feel self-assured by excelling in technology and innovation.

“After anchoring an online Get Mentored session, I learned to view challenges as opportunities. I volunteered to host the event, and though it was initially a struggle, I learned a lot from my teachers who guided me on how to conduct the event.”

Deepasri’s teachers intentionally assigned the task to girl students to help them build confidence, sharpen their communication skills, and break gender stereotypes in leadership roles.

“I became more responsible and focused in my studies and daily life after hosting events at school. Helping to organize the annual day event, working as a team, developing better communication and time-management skills, and learning to exude confidence on stage were advantageous takeaways for me.”

Kanishka’s teacher found it remarkable to witness the girl students perform confidently on stage after diligent rehearsals. Their smiles and excitement made her feel proud and happy.

“I was an introvert, but after becoming a school tour guide, I have opened up, and am able to speak to everyone with ease. I also now speak English more fluently and have improved in my studies. Besides, meeting international visitors has broadened my knowledge.”

The teacher who mentors the school tour guides says that it was a significant moment when a visiting dignitary praised the female guides she interacted with.

“I was excited at the novelty of planning and executing an event by ourselves. I improved my planning and time-management skills by juggling classwork with break and library periods. My parents were thrilled with my newfound abilities and suggested I organize family gatherings.”

Sangeetha’s teachers purposely assigned the task of organizing Sadhguru’s birthday celebrations to an all-girl team as they initially did not want to take the lead. Seeing them pull off the event well was gratifying.

“I think I will become a good teacher because of the experience of mentoring younger students in Peer Learning. My father was concerned that I was giving up on my lessons to participate in Peer Learning and felt reassured when I pointed out that it is part of our curriculum and helps me improve academically.”

Harshika’s teachers specifically chose girl peer leaders because they patiently attended to the younger students and took care of them as a teacher would.