Dhammajarinee Witthaya School

Dhammajarinee Witthaya School (DWS) is the first and only free Thai boarding school administered by Buddhist nuns.

Their mission is to provide a safe home and quality education, kindergarten to grade 12, for underserved girls in Thailand—helping break the cycle of poverty and a lack of opportunity.

The school began in 1990 when Buddhist nuns working in an impoverished area in Ratchaburi saw the serious discrepancy in gender inequality beyond primary school. Orphaned or impoverished boys could become novice Buddhist monks and receive a safe home, food, and education in a Buddhist temple. Similarly disadvantaged girls had little or no opportunity to further their education. The nuns took this challenge into their own hands. They constructed dormitory and classroom buildings and began teaching 20 orphaned girls aged 12 to 15.