Bangladesh - Bangla Hope Children's School

Mission
To provide for the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being of vulnerable children, youth and women in Bangladesh.

Description
Bangla Hope is currently home to 167 kids from the ages of a few months to 17 years. The kids live and attend classes on campus. They live in hostel rooms with around 15-20 beds per room and one caregiver. Missionaries  mainly work as teachers, tutors, and general supervisors. This is a great location for student missionaries interested in teaching, counseling, social work, and nursing and that have previous experience with kids such as camp. The kids speak English well, but don’t always want to speak it, so its helpful to learn some basic Bangla before coming.

More Info

• Average Fundraising Goal: ~$3,600. Prices may vary. See student missions office
• Timeline: Timing is flexible. The school system in Bangladesh undergoes frequent changes, so it differs every year. It’s currently in a trimester system and the school year begins in January. It is best not to arrive during or near one of their school breaks.
• Location: Hazrapur, Bangladesh. Hazrapur is a small village in the Joypurhat district in the north-western portion of Bangladesh near the town of Hili. It’s a border town, so trucks from India come through a lot and cause traffic, but also import many Indian goods. The local economy is sustained by rice and personal farm animals. Most of the land around is used to grow rice, and in between the biannual rice harvests, mustard and potatoes are planted. Although it is small, you can find most things you need in Hili because it’s so close to India. Check out the location on Google Maps!
• Living Accommodations: Missionaries stay in the guest apartment over the clinic. It houses up to four people and is in excellent condition. If there are four people, two will have to share a bed, but it’s larger than a king size. There are also other options if there are both male and female SMs. You need to pay 50 USD a month for expenses, but that covers electricity, Wi-Fi, house cleaning, and meals.
• Language: Most people on campus can communicate in English. The kids speak it very well, however, it is best to learn some Bangla before coming. It helps in communicating with the staff, smaller children, and outside of campus. 
• Food: Meals are prepared by the kitchen staff. It’s typically rice, daal (lentils), and different curries or vegetables. However, there are a lot of varieties of food and the cook is amazing. There isn’t a kitchen in the guest house, and it inconveniences the campus more to take missionaries to the market than to cook, so it’s just part of the monthly rent.
• Requirements: Tourist Bangla and Indian visas are required. The application requirements are different for each country as are the attitudes toward missionaries, so make sure you have researched that before you apply.

Position Info

• School Nurse, Tutor, Middle School Teacher - The positions are flexible, and the staff are very considerate of your strengths and preferences. The main position, however, is more along the lines of mentor/therapist/conflict resolution.

Bangla Hope's Website