Pathashaala, the youngest of the Krishnamurti Foundation India schools, is situated in Elimichampet village, located 80 km from Chennai. It attempts to bridge the urban and rural divide, aiming to foster individual autonomy and encourage intelligent coexistence with nature.
In a tranquil atmosphere, surrounded by distant hills and caressed by fresh breezes, the staff and students are invited to embrace an environmentally sustainable way of living. The campus utilizes energy sparingly and incorporates solar energy, windmills, and biogas systems. Pathashaala is conscientious about water usage and pollution, and is committed to ecological sanitation. The campus, which produces zero black water effluents, features dry composting toilets for all residents and visitors. Abundant vegetation, including carefully planted trees and herbs, adorn the surroundings. More than 100 bird species, over 70 butterfly species, and 35 types of grass can be observed on the campus (documented by our first alumnus M. Yuvan).


Our History
The Vallipuram project emerged from the journey of The School, an exploration in education and a vision for the future. It took shape as Pathashaala in 2010 and became an independent unit of KFI in 2012.
"To understand life is to understand ourselves, and that is both the beginning and the end of education."
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Vision

Surrounded by nature on a flat landscape, residents and visitors at Pathashaala have the privilege of daily gazing upon the horizon, witnessing sunrises and sunsets. Pathashaala operates with a long-term vision in mind, making choices that consider future needs while effectively addressing the immediate. The school emphasizes the importance of questioning and places a strong focus on the holistic education of individuals. Knowledge and intellectual capability alone are insufficient for navigating life's challenges. The core intention of the school is to cultivate the ability to inquire, observe oneself, and relate widely with respect and dignity. The school provides numerous opportunities for such learning. It is therefore imperative for parents and students to understand and appreciate the school's intentions and actively participate in this progressive movement. For more, please see [1], [2].

"The purpose, the aim and drive of these schools is to equip the child with the most excellent technological proficiency, so that he may function with clarity and efficiency in the modern world, and far more important to create the right climate, so that the child may develop fully as a complete human being. This means giving him the opportunity to flower in goodness so that he is rightly related to people, things and ideas, to the whole of life. To live is to be related. There is no relationship to anything if there is not the right feeling for beauty, a response to nature, to music and art, a highly developed aesthetic sense." - Jiddu Krishnamurti
People
The faculty comprises a group of well-qualified, committed individuals with diverse backgrounds. The staff body consists of experienced teachers from KFI schools as well as new teachers. At Pathashaala, we use the term ‘Educator-Learner’ instead of ‘Teacher’. Pathashaala endeavors to cultivate a nurturing and evolving environment not only for the young but also for the adults who play a vital role in fostering the atmosphere of learning at Pathashaala.

Sumitra M. Gautama

Principal

M.A. English Honours; M.Ed. (Madras University). Teacher since 1988 at The School and Pathashaala. Trained counsellor with multiple certifications, including career counselling. Holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Dance (Kalakshetra). Worked extensively with Drama and Dialogue for Class 11 and senior school trips over 18 years. Principal at Pathashaala since 2018. Coordinated Outreach at The School and now at Pathashaala. Anchored the Active Learning Methodology (ALM) sharing with TN SSA that reached 16,500 schools, and several programmes with SCERT, ICDS, etc. Teaches English and Global Perspectives for Classes X, AS & A Level.

Bhaveen Sawlani

Vice Principal

M.A. English Honours (Mumbai University). Teacher at Pathashaala since 2019, Vice Principal since June 2023. Teaches English and Global Perspectives. Was part of the team that started the Zoom and Google Classroom approach during the COVID-19 lockdown at Pathashaala and coordinated this for many years. Proficient in Japanese; worked as a teacher for a year at DPS Surat. Was in Japan for one year as a Goodwill Ambassador through Rotary’s International Exchange Program. Certified in Paragliding (2012) and completed two National Himalayan Mountaineering Expeditions.

Bharath Balaji

Headmaster

B.E. Biomedical Engineering (Anna University); M.S. Biomedical Engineering (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor). Educator-Learner at Pathashaala since 2016. Teaches General Science and Biology.

K. Nithya

Assistant Headmistress

BSc, BEd, Physical Science (Chemistry); MA, Yoga. Worked as a Science Teacher at Avadi Municipal School under RMSA (2012). Educator-Learner at Pathashaala since 2017. Teaches Tamil.

K. Ramesh

Exam Officer

B.Sc. Physics (MKU); BLIS; Postgraduate Diploma in System Analysis and Design (NIIT). 27 years in KFI institutions, including Valley School and The School. Educator-Learner for Science in middle school and Physics at AS & A Level. Part of the founding team from 2010 and served as Headmaster from 2012.

Anuj Kumar Sharma

Coordinator, Middle School

B.Tech. (Mechanical Engineering), AKTU, Uttar Pradesh (2015). Founder and Teacher, ICI Learning, for 9 years. Teaches Mathematics to middle school and Physics at AS & A Level.

Soumya Das

Coordinator, Senior School & Emerging Directions

PhD Statistics, KAUST; MSc Statistics, IIT Kanpur; Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Wisconsin–Madison. Educator-Learner at Pathashaala since 2023. Teaches Mathematics in the senior school. Coordinates the school's computer systems and Zoom meetings. Manages the school's website. Coordinates project work in the senior school, the Device Engineering Lab (DEL), and the school's collaborations with IIT Madras, SSN College of Engineering, and other institutions as part of the school's emerging directions.

Uma Iyer

Director Finance & Administration

B.Sc. Mathematics; CA. In KFI institutions since 2002. Coordinated Finance and Administration at The School from 2002. Part of the founding team of Pathashaala and served as Educator-Learner and Coordinator, Finance & Administration from 2012. Trustee, KFI.

Ramkumar Mahadevan

Joint-Secretary, Director Campus Development

M.Sc. (Madras University); B.Ed. 29 years in the Air Force, retired as Group Captain. 12 years as a Physics teacher for ISC Classes 11 & 12. Senior School Coordinator at The School, KFI, for 10 years; Principal, Rajghat Besant School, for 3 years; Principal, The Valley School, for 1 year. Currently Director, Campus Development and Joint Secretary at Palar Centre for Learning.

G. Gautama

Director-Secretary

B.Tech. Metallurgy (IIT Madras). Research Scientist at BARC for 5 years. Independent consultant for 10 years. Principal & Director, The School, KFI, for 21 years from 1991; Director, Sahyadri Education Centre, for 3 years. Led the founding team and provided direction at Pathashaala since 2002. Trustee, KFI.