Page 56 - EW January 2025

People

Extraordinary educators the Aurobindo-inspired Mirambika
School (‘a profound experience”).
Two years later, when Ajay was
transferred to Singapore, Meenakshi
taught at the Singapore American
School (2007-09), “perhaps the most
well-resourced school worldwide”.
In 2009, the experienced duo took a
sabbatical in Bali, Indonesia where
both worked for the now globally re-
puted Green School which was then
in its nascent years — Ajay in busi-
ness development and Meenakshi
in teacher training and curriculum
development.
In 2014 the couple moved back to
India and settled in Pune. After their
daughter Anjali expressed a wish to
be home-schooled, they decided to
put their experience of K-12 educa-
tion acquired in the US, Singapore,
DLRC founders Meenakshi, Ajay & Pavan Iyengar (centre): inventive experiential learning and Bali to use and together with
social activist Pavan Iyengar started
EENAKSHI AND AJAY were showcased. The DLRC manage- DLRC in 2015 with seed funding of
DALMIA, and PAVAN ment estimates the number of visitor Rs.1 lakh each.
MIYENGAR are the highly- footfalls at the Decade Fair at 1,300. Direct talk. “DLRC is driven by the
qualified co-founders of Drive History. In 1994, Meenakshi (nee core philosophy of experiential
Change Learning and Resource Garg), a physics graduate of Calcutta learning involving head, heart, and
Centre (DLRC, estb. 2015), a unique University, contracted a “traditional hands. Our children learn by work-
K-12 “learning space” that may arranged marriage” with Ajay Dal- ing in fields, and learn carpentry,
well redefine schooling through mia, a business management gradu- welding, plumbing, and toy-making
its inventive, experiential learning ate of Michigan University (USA) among other skills at our design lab
model strongly connected with employed at the Detroit head office from youngest age. Moreover, the
nature and natural habitats. of Pitney Bowes, a transnational school’s Enrichment Clubs enable
Since DLRC admitted its first company engaged in SaaS shipping children to explore subjects such as
batch of two children ten years ago in solutions, mailing innovations, and mosaic art, cooking, music, robotics,
a rented bungalow, enrolments have financial services to clients world- theatre, dance and a variety of sports
risen to 300 students mentored by wide. Soon after their marriage, she and games including football, vol-
50 facilitators (teachers) prompting moved to Detroit, USA, the automo- leyball, and kabaddi. All this together
the promoter-managers to migrate biles manufacturing hub of America, with well-planned and structured
the school to an eco-friendly one- where she graduated with a degree academics. The campus design is
acre farm-style campus in Susgaon, in automotive design. In the subse- eco-friendly with bio toilets, bio-
formerly a suburb of Pune (pop. 7.3 quent years she acquired Bachelors gas, vermicompost, and rain water
million), which has expanded into and Masters degrees in education harvesting systems. Children learn in
Maharashtra’s second largest indus- from Boston University and gained open classrooms without doors and
trial city after Mumbai. valuable experience teaching in the windows to experience nature’s sea-
Newspeg. Last November, DLRC American public school education sons as they learn. The syllabus we
celebrated its tenth anniversary with system (2001-2004). teach is not novel. The differentiating
a Decade Fair, a three-day festival In 2005 to provide solace and factor is how we teach, immersing
during which students and facilita- comfort to her father following the children in nature and with a strong
tors’ work exhibits, learning stations, death of her mother, the couple emphasis on continuous teacher
unique activities such as carpentry, moved to Delhi where Ajay helped development. The teacher pupil-ratio
embroidery, toy shows, cultural set up the India office of Pitney is 1:12 to ensure personal attention
performances, and ‘Chai & Why’, a Bowes while Meenakshi served as to every child,” says Meenakshi.
unique subject cafe for educators, a parent volunteer and teacher at As DLRC is not a ‘registered’

56 EDUCATIONWORLD JANUARY 2025