An woman-only institute with a difference: BFA-a saviour of poor female students

An educational institution with a diffference is first in Bangladesh where poor and helpless female students get completely free education with the opportunity to study as residential students. The institution is Bangladesh Female Academy (BFA).
BFA situates on 8 acres land in Derai upazila headquarter in Sunamgonj, adjacent to Derai-Sunamgonj Road. Jamil Chowdhury, president of Grameen Jonokallyan Sangsad, and his wife Bagum Rokeya Chowdhury are founders of the institution.
The institution was established to make the poor, orphan and deprived talented female students self-reliant by imparting them better education including information technology and religious education and to create opportunity for socio-economic development.
The academic activities of the institution formally started from class three to five from April 6 in 2006. Now the class of the Academy is three to nine and this year 18 students has registered their names as the students of class nine for the first time, informed its Principal Najma Chowdhury.
She also informed that the number of the students of the academy are 300 now. In the first year 90 students were admitted class three to five.
The principal also informed that every year the date of admission is announced through advertisement in newspapers. Admission Test for all classes are taken. Orphans, poor and helpless students get priority. Girls from all over the country have equal opportunity in this Academy.
Founder of BFA Jamil Chowdhury told The New Nation that this institution starts from class one to class nine leading to Masters Degree. He said that its primary purpose is to make students self-reliant. This academy is an exceptional one in Bangladesh.
Visiting the institution, this reporter found that BFA has already established an overseas teacher exchange programme with different institutions in UK.
Overseas teacher Nelly Shattock, who came from Nottinham University in UK for three months, told this reporter the all sides of the institution are very favourable for education for poor and helpless female students. Praising the teachers and authority of the institution, she said that they are very cordial to the students and they love them like mothers.
The BFA authority told this reporter that BFA is committed to reach the computer education to all students and for this purpose a computer lab already established. Learning computer is compulsory for all students and the students brows internet in the lab.
BFA puts special stress on co-curriculum activities to the students. The students take part in different out-door and indoor games in extra time. The other co-curriculum activities are cultural week, stamp collection, drawing and painting.
BFA is run by some committees those are advisory council, managing committee, sub-committee, building construction committee and finance committee.
Its financial support comes form different sources: those are Grameen Jonokallyan Sangsad, donations of founder members, major donors, life members, sponsors and memorial contributors. Any interested person can take opportunity as a sponsor being a guardian of female student of the Academy donating Tk. 2500 per month for educational expense of a student.
The social welfare ministry helps 25 orphan students of the institution donating Tk. 700 to a per student for a per month.
Talking to this reporter Shahina Akter, a student of class seven, said that she was deprived from proper facility to take education. But now she thinks about her as a meritorious student after admission in the institution. She was admitted in class three in 2006.
Class five student Ruparani Das, daughter of Dhirendra Chandra Das of Moidyanagar upozila in Sunamgong, got chance in the institution trough UNO of his upozila. She told ‘the UNO sent me here for proper education and I am very proud for being a student of BFA. Otherwise I would have been deprived form education because my father is very poor and helpless.’
Class nine student Nurunnahar Jahan, daughter of Md Nurul Islam of Kamlakanda upozila of Netrokona, told that her guardians had stopped her study due to poverty. Her way of study had been unlocked after taking admission here. She informed that she wanted to be a doctor in future.

Courtesy of The New Nation