Nagpur: A CBSE school’s policy, implemented in 2015, has proved to be a godsend for five students who lost their earning parent to Covid-19.
The Achievers School (TAS) provides free education right up to the board level, if any of its enrolled students loses the family breadwinner.
Though this is the sixth year of the policy, it was during the Covid-19 pandemic that its charitable objective was truly achieved.
‘EduShield’ is a concept thought up by school director Sapna Katiyar, after a chance meeting with some corporate insurance representatives.
“They were basically trying to sell us some insurance options, where a child’s fee is taken care of in certain circumstances.
But then I decided that our school itself must offer such a policy for all our students,” said Katiyar.
In the post-Covid era, five students have benefited from EduShield.
“The numbers before Covid-19 were less than that,” said Katiyar.
Apart from conceptualizing the policy, Katiyar had made up her mind that EduShield had to be offered free of cost.
“We do not charge anything extra for this.
There is an enrolment form which is given at admission, in which the name of the main earning family member has to be mentioned.
This process is mandatory and we do not proceed with admission till the form is filled,” said Katiyar.
Initially, parents were not to keen to register for this, even though it’s free.
“Some parents felt uncomfortable about death being discussed, but soon everybody was on board,” said Katiyar.
While many families who have witnessed death of the earning member struggle with fee payments, those at TAS find their kids’ educational future secure.
“A child’s father died due to Covid-19 and the surviving members were scared that they were not enrolled in EduShield.
But we told them that registration was mandatory, and the child’s fees is now the school’s responsibility,” said Katiyar.
While other schools also consider partial or full fee waiver on a case-to-case basis, TAS stands out because of its ‘no questions asked’ mantra.
“We don’t review the case and don’t call for multiple documents.
Once we receive the death certificate for the person whose name is registered in EduShield, it’s done.
From that day on, the student does not need to pay any fee,” said Katiyar, who was engaged in the IT sector before starting the school 13 years ago.
The school clarified that this policy is applicable only for enrolled students.
“Those seeking admissions now, after a death in the family, won’t be covered,” said Katiyar.