Two Indonesian educators have been commended by the Chou Ta-Kuan Cultural and Educational Foundation for their charity work and will receive the Fervent Global Love of Lives Award. The pair of 75-year-old twin sisters, Sri Rossyati and Sri Irianingsih, have devoted nearly half of their lives to educating impoverished children.
In 1990, the twin sisters established Kartini Emergency School in North Jakarta, Indonesia, providing an education to thousands of underprivileged children. Unlike other public and private schools in Indonesia, the tuition-free school accepts students who cannot otherwise go to school due to not having an ID, birth certificate, or household registration.
The school provides free uniforms, transportation, and food. Courses in foreign languages, reading, mathematics, cooking, and music are all part of the curriculum. Even the parents of students have weekly access to technical and vocational courses.
Rossyati and Irianingsih once ran five schools simultaneously, accommodating up to 3,000 students at a time. In 2008, the Indonesian government abolished tuition fees for public primary schools. As the government continued to provide social relief and the economy grew, many of their students were able to transfer to public schools, and the student population decreased to around 150.
The sisters join 459 other global leaders from 79 countries who have received the Chou Ta-Kuan Cultural and Educational Foundation’s Fervent Global Love of Lives Award over the past 27 years. The foundation is arranging for the sisters to fly to Taiwan to receive their award.