You are my friends. Photographer: Nanik, Joglo Preschool, 2025
Joglo Preschool is seeking pledges for scholarships for children with special needs by June 15. Would you, someone you know, your Quaker meeting, religious group, or a group of friends love to cover a scholarship of $300/year? Donate today to Friends Peace Teams “AWP-Joglo Preschool Scholarship Fund.”
Joglo Preschool at Rumah Damai (Peace Place) in Pati is a special place… This inclusive school is not only a place to learn and play, it is also like a second home for many children, especially those who need special support. The program combines the Alternatives to Violence Project’s Culture of Justice and Peace approach with quality child development and permaculture design. Together, they bring about remarkable changes in children of all abilities and their families.
Children who often felt rejected now feel accepted… For many parents, finding a school that accepts children with special needs is not easy. They are used to the word “no,” with doors closing before they even knock. But Joglo tries to embrace and accept all children by paying attention to the teachers’ ability to support them. The children learn community agreements, practice independence, and grow into more confident individuals.
A focus on teacher and parent development has led to great successes… Over fifteen years, the Joglo community has seen visibly healthier and happier families, communities, and children. In the past three years, Joglo teachers met with a Universal Design for Learning specialist to design the school approach and materials to meet the needs of all children. Doing this has increased the learning and development of every child.
More and more people want to join… Every morning, the cheerful sound of children greeting each other and playing together creates a warm atmosphere. This togetherness builds a sense of security and comfort, making the school a place that is always missed. And now, more and more families want to join.
Success brings on stress… This approach requires much more teacher time and effort than other schools. Parents pay according to ability, so every child who has applied previously has attended. The oddity of learning through play and the diversity of mixing religions and backgrounds kept enrollment low. Now, visible success has led to greatly increased interest. Joglo Preschool has room for 38 students, half of whom need special support. This year, twelve children will graduate while 26 have applied and more are inquiring. At the same time, Joglo Preschool teachers often cannot stay at the current low pay of $54-153/month. The teachers who lovingly, patiently, and diligently learn the best ways to assist children also need a decent wage of at least $138-240/month to stay in the program at this school.
Including all children with heart needs help to keep growing… Joglo Preschool is a rare example in southeast Asia of quality learning for all children. As more families apply, surrounding schools in Pati and the region want to visit and learn this approach. Joglo Preschool has become what we hoped for — and wondered if it was possible — quality early childhood learning in a rural, local community, ecology, culture, and language. The two dozen families enrolled, many of whom are caring for children with special needs, cannot carry the cost of this level of development for others.
Building children’s futures together… Joglo Preschool strives to be a safe, comfortable, inclusive place of learning for all children. We are about to publish our Just, Peaceful Classroom Culture Curriculum, and have a Haverford College intern mid-year to draft Universal Design for Learning Illustrated Guide for Parents and Preschool Teachers. More educators are asking to visit and see how to create such a classroom that is fully adapted to the needs of every child. We want to remain a home for children with varied needs, but we only continue with a new group of sustaining, financial partners.
To sustain our program, we need pledges of $300/year for scholarships for children with special needs. Only $25/month can change the life of a child and their family and keep Joglo Preschool alive. Would you, someone you know, your Quaker meeting, religious group, or a group of friends pledge to cover a scholarship? A pledge by June 15 secures a student’s enrollment for the 2025-26 school year.
If so, please make a donation today, designated to “AWP-Joglo Scholarship.” Go to Friends Peace Teams to donate online or for wire transfer instructions. Mail cheques/checks to Friends Peace Teams-AWP: 1001 Park Ave, St Louis, MO 63104 or c/o EJ Drexler, 5/5 Que Court, Riverside, TAS 7250. Or made out to FPT Europe, Thurlibeer, Stratton, Bude, Cornwall EX23 9NP
We appreciate financial partners… If so led
Joglo Preschool has been self-sufficient from the beginning… Family tuition has always paid teacher salaries and recurring costs. A traditional Javanese community of Samin, similar to the European-descent Amish, donated the building in gratitude for Peace Place’s advocacy to save their mountain from the cement industry. And teachers have worked tirelessly to study, learn, experiment, and change with very low salaries and virtually no local technical support, supplies, or services.
Without outside support, it would not have been possible… Over the years, Friends Peace Teams (FPT) volunteers transferred state-of-the-art knowledge including, among many others, international education consultant Nadine Hoover, permaculture design experts Paula and Ian Panaanen, and Universal Design for Learning Fulbright Scholar Raleigh Sadlier. FPT paid for significant capital costs such as unit blocks (blocks with uniform dimensions to teach math and geometry) at a cost greater than 4 months of a teacher’s salary, permaculture renovations, and release time for curriculum development.
To keep going and growing, however, Joglo needs regular outside support… Self-sufficiency would work, except for the high number of children with special needs, the complexity of delivering care, the need to develop and document locally adapted curriculum, and the desire of so many others to learn. To keep going, and growing, we need more sustained help from others.
- Photo:Maira.
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Individual Education Plan (IEP): Maira - Photo: Nino.
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Individual Education Plan (IEP): IEP of Nino - Photo:Aka.
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Individual Education Plan (IEP): IEP of Aka
Making dolls from scrap materials. Photographer: Nanik, Joglo Preschool, 2025