Compassion School

Compassion School was created to strengthen local education for children in Tsum Valley. By improving teaching, facilities, nutrition, residence support, and learning resources close to home, the school gives families a stronger local option during a child’s early years and may reduce the need for children to leave the valley at a very young age.

A traditional Buddhist monastery building with intricate colorful wooden eaves and windows, situated in a mountainous region with snow-capped peaks in the background. A person in warm clothing is walking up the stone steps leading to the entrance.

School overview

  • Managed and operated by local community leadership.

  • Opened April 22, 2026.

  • Provides education from kindergarten to Grade 5.

  • Approximately 50 students are currently enrolled.

  • 32 students are living in the attached student residence.

  • Healthy meals provided for students.

  • Enabled students from two smaller, lower-resourced schools to move into the new school.

  • Strengthens the quality of local education.

Two young boys sitting at a desk with colorful notebooks and pens, focusing attentively, in a classroom setting.

The Foundation’s Role

Compassion School is managed locally, not operated by the Fagan Foundation. The Foundation supports needs identified by the school and local leadership, directing funds toward defined commitments, with reporting provided back to the Foundation. Ongoing engagement, including future visits to the school, helps ensure the Foundation remains closely connected to the work it supports.

To understand the education challenge in Tsum Valley.

⟨ Understand the Need

To see what donations support, view the Foundation’s current priorities.

View Current Priorities  ⟩

A school with red roofs and a sign that reads 'Compassion School' in front of a mountainous landscape with snow-capped peaks and green forests.
A wooden office desk with two computer monitors, a printer, and some chairs and office supplies in front of a wooden wall shelf with books, binders, and paper stacks.
Interior of a wooden cabin with wood-paneled walls and ceiling, a whiteboard mounted on the wall, shelves, and a window with an open door showing an outdoor scene.
Children in school uniforms line up outdoors, with an adult woman and man handing out colorful water bottles during daytime.
Group of children standing outdoors in a line with snow-capped mountains in the background.
Building with multiple doorways, laundry area, and two green water tanks on the roof, set against snowy mountain peaks in the background.
Outdoor scene featuring a stone wall with a white concrete sink with three faucets, a stone wall to the right, a grassy field, and trees in the background.
A woman and a young girl sit on the ground outside near a stone building. The woman wears a colorful headscarf and pink clothing, while the girl wears a white sweater and fluffy pink accessories. They are looking at the camera, with a backpack featur
Colorful playground set with slides and climbing structures in a mountainous outdoor area with stone wall, flags, and snow-capped mountains in the background.
A person with short hair and earrings holding a young child with brown hair and a blue jacket in front of a mountainous landscape with snow-covered peaks.
Group of young children running and playing outdoors on a dirt surface with rocks and sparse vegetation in the background.
A young girl with dark hair leaning on a concrete ledge outdoors, wearing a pink jacket and a multicolored scarf, with a slightly serious expression.
A young girl with dark hair tied in a ponytail, wearing a pink sweater, gray cardigan, and long skirt, walking outdoors with a large brown backpack that has a water bottle in its side pocket, in a landscape with trees and rocks.
Two children sitting at a table, the girl on the left wearing a fuzzy yellow jacket and the boy on the right wearing a black jacket, both engaged in writing or drawing, with the boy looking towards the girl.
A white building with black-trimmed windows, colorful decorative wooden trim, and flags in front, set against snow-capped mountains in the background. A person is walking up a staircase toward the entrance.
A group of children and adults, likely tourists or students, gathered on the steps of Tsum Monastery in Tibet, with some waving at the camera. The entrance is decorated with colorful traditional Tibetan architecture, and a sign reads 'Tsum Monastery'