Support Students at the Ámbédkar School in Hungary
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As students return to a unique and majority Romani high school in northeastern Hungary amidst the ongoing pandemic, the future of their education is in doubt. They need our help.
The situation
In schools across Hungary, September 1 marks the first day of the new academic term. It’s a time of excitement, anticipation and stress. This is especially so this year as students prepare for in-person classes after a semester of online instruction and as the global pandemic proceeds. For the students of the Dr. Ámbédkár School, however, an unexpected additional doubt hangs over their return to the classroom. On August 31, the day before classes were to begin, the Hungarian government decided to suspend the school’s funding, placing its continuing operation in jeopardy.
The school
The Dr. Ámbédkar School is unique in Hungary, and I’ve been lucky to volunteer with its students over the past three years, both while in Budapest for my dissertation research, and remotely in Chicago. Located in Miskolc, Borsod County, in the country’s deindustrialized northeast, the school provides a pathway to high school graduation for students from multiply disadvantaged social backgrounds. As the school’s English language instructor Nora Tyeklar explains, “Most of the Ámbédkar students are of Roma ethnicity and received their elementary school education in segregated schools, in segregated classrooms, or in schools where teachers had given up on them. There is a history of segregating policies in the Hungarian education system that has brought into existence segregated schools throughout the country among its counties, cities, and villages...In Borsod County, drop out rates among students coming from multiply disadvantaged backgrounds are among the highest rates nationally; for Roma, this is all the more so.”
The financial impacts
Although the school has been moving toward a funding model independent of the state, building up a local donor base takes time. With the recent government announcement, today it faces imminent budget shortfalls and financial uncertainty. The school maintains a dormitory to house students who travel from surrounding villages to Miskolc for instruction, sponsors cultural outings to and group tutoring in Budapest, and provides small living stipends.
“The Dr. Ámbédkar High School has experienced its fair share of existential threats,” Tyeklar notes. “To cover operational costs, teachers have occasionally had to forego salaries in order to pay the school’s bills and the school is often dependent upon short-term grants from the European Union. [Last year] I witnessed the school face one of the most trying financial hardships of its twelve years in Borsod County. Out of dire necessity, the leadership had to turn to government officials as an attempt to keep the school running. The response they received was hardly positive. In fact, they were given an ultimatum: the school will be handed over to the Hungarian state should the financial troubles continue into the future. Faced with these circumstances, the school’s leaders and teachers reached out to its ‘global community’ and began networking, doing everything in their power to find some kind of solution…”
What you can do to help
With the cancelation of the government’s funding, the school once again finds itself in financial danger, perhaps greater than ever before. Even a small donation will help the school continue its mission of supporting Romani high schoolers reach graduation. I know the past few months have been difficult ones for all of us and resources are short right now. But anything you can contribute will help the students of the Dr. Ámbédkar School start the term on surer footing.
Why your donation matters
Your contribution will help support:
- The operational budget of the student dormitory
- Classroom supplies, textbooks and technology equipment
- School operational costs, including building maintenance, electricity and heating
- Stipends to cover living expenses
Share this page on social media!
To help get the word out, please consider sharing this post over Facebook, Twitter, etc.
For additional information about the Dr. Ámbédkar School:
Dr Ámbédkar School Facebook page
2016 documentary about the school, "Angry Buddha": https://magyarhangya.hu/film/merges-buddha/
Information on the Dr. Ámbédkar School’s scholarship program
Translation of a recent press release on the Hungarian government’s decision to end its supplemental funding of the Dr. Ámbédkár School:
Roma Press Center
31 August 2020
Back to School, Viewed from Below
The Dr. Ámbédkar School, located in Borsod County, Hungary, will no longer receive supplemental financial support from the state from this year onward, similar to other foundation schools. The school brings Romani students, the majority of whom come from extreme poverty, to high school graduation. It should be noted that the school is in an even worse financial position than other foundation schools, as these institutions were still offered half of last year’s support, indicated János Orsós, founder of the school. The cessation of the operation’s financing is a surprising turn of events, because two years ago the Hungarian state equipped the school with a new dormitory, and last year with a modern computer lab. The withdrawal of funding drives the school into an extraordinarily difficult position, but the academic term begins despite it. For their students, this is perhaps their only opportunity to break out of poverty.
If you’d prefer to donate directly to the school via PayPal, please use the following links:
You can also donate directly via bank transfer using the following details:
Financial institution: MagNet Magyar Közösségi Bank Zrt.
Account holder: Dr. Ámbédkar Ifjúsági Egyesület
Address: HUNGARY 3532 Miskolc, Tátra utca 2.
Routing number: 16200106-11616685
International bank account number (IBAN): HU56 1620 0106 1161 6685 0000 0000
The situation
In schools across Hungary, September 1 marks the first day of the new academic term. It’s a time of excitement, anticipation and stress. This is especially so this year as students prepare for in-person classes after a semester of online instruction and as the global pandemic proceeds. For the students of the Dr. Ámbédkár School, however, an unexpected additional doubt hangs over their return to the classroom. On August 31, the day before classes were to begin, the Hungarian government decided to suspend the school’s funding, placing its continuing operation in jeopardy.
The school
The Dr. Ámbédkar School is unique in Hungary, and I’ve been lucky to volunteer with its students over the past three years, both while in Budapest for my dissertation research, and remotely in Chicago. Located in Miskolc, Borsod County, in the country’s deindustrialized northeast, the school provides a pathway to high school graduation for students from multiply disadvantaged social backgrounds. As the school’s English language instructor Nora Tyeklar explains, “Most of the Ámbédkar students are of Roma ethnicity and received their elementary school education in segregated schools, in segregated classrooms, or in schools where teachers had given up on them. There is a history of segregating policies in the Hungarian education system that has brought into existence segregated schools throughout the country among its counties, cities, and villages...In Borsod County, drop out rates among students coming from multiply disadvantaged backgrounds are among the highest rates nationally; for Roma, this is all the more so.”
The financial impacts
Although the school has been moving toward a funding model independent of the state, building up a local donor base takes time. With the recent government announcement, today it faces imminent budget shortfalls and financial uncertainty. The school maintains a dormitory to house students who travel from surrounding villages to Miskolc for instruction, sponsors cultural outings to and group tutoring in Budapest, and provides small living stipends.
“The Dr. Ámbédkar High School has experienced its fair share of existential threats,” Tyeklar notes. “To cover operational costs, teachers have occasionally had to forego salaries in order to pay the school’s bills and the school is often dependent upon short-term grants from the European Union. [Last year] I witnessed the school face one of the most trying financial hardships of its twelve years in Borsod County. Out of dire necessity, the leadership had to turn to government officials as an attempt to keep the school running. The response they received was hardly positive. In fact, they were given an ultimatum: the school will be handed over to the Hungarian state should the financial troubles continue into the future. Faced with these circumstances, the school’s leaders and teachers reached out to its ‘global community’ and began networking, doing everything in their power to find some kind of solution…”
What you can do to help
With the cancelation of the government’s funding, the school once again finds itself in financial danger, perhaps greater than ever before. Even a small donation will help the school continue its mission of supporting Romani high schoolers reach graduation. I know the past few months have been difficult ones for all of us and resources are short right now. But anything you can contribute will help the students of the Dr. Ámbédkar School start the term on surer footing.
Why your donation matters
Your contribution will help support:
- The operational budget of the student dormitory
- Classroom supplies, textbooks and technology equipment
- School operational costs, including building maintenance, electricity and heating
- Stipends to cover living expenses
Share this page on social media!
To help get the word out, please consider sharing this post over Facebook, Twitter, etc.
For additional information about the Dr. Ámbédkar School:
Dr Ámbédkar School Facebook page
2016 documentary about the school, "Angry Buddha": https://magyarhangya.hu/film/merges-buddha/
Information on the Dr. Ámbédkar School’s scholarship program
Translation of a recent press release on the Hungarian government’s decision to end its supplemental funding of the Dr. Ámbédkár School:
Roma Press Center
31 August 2020
Back to School, Viewed from Below
The Dr. Ámbédkar School, located in Borsod County, Hungary, will no longer receive supplemental financial support from the state from this year onward, similar to other foundation schools. The school brings Romani students, the majority of whom come from extreme poverty, to high school graduation. It should be noted that the school is in an even worse financial position than other foundation schools, as these institutions were still offered half of last year’s support, indicated János Orsós, founder of the school. The cessation of the operation’s financing is a surprising turn of events, because two years ago the Hungarian state equipped the school with a new dormitory, and last year with a modern computer lab. The withdrawal of funding drives the school into an extraordinarily difficult position, but the academic term begins despite it. For their students, this is perhaps their only opportunity to break out of poverty.
If you’d prefer to donate directly to the school via PayPal, please use the following links:
You can also donate directly via bank transfer using the following details:
Financial institution: MagNet Magyar Közösségi Bank Zrt.
Account holder: Dr. Ámbédkar Ifjúsági Egyesület
Address: HUNGARY 3532 Miskolc, Tátra utca 2.
Routing number: 16200106-11616685
International bank account number (IBAN): HU56 1620 0106 1161 6685 0000 0000
Co-organizers (2)
Roy Kimmey
Organizer
Chicago, IL
Nora Tyeklar
Co-organizer