CGEIN BOARD

Jhabindra K. Subedi is principal of the academic school for young monks at Shechen Monastery in Boudha, Kathmandu. Jhabindra began his education in his village, but moved to Kathmandu for his college and university studies. He has completed a masters degree in Public Administration and Education from Kathmandu University School of Education, along with degrees in science and in law. Jhabindra has been working in education for more than two decades and served as the principal of Thrangu Rinpoche’s School for Himalayan Children. He is founder and currently secretary of the Buddhist Schools Committee Nepal (BSCN). BSCN is the first educational organization in Nepal to coordinate activities and interests among Nepal’s monastic schools. As a practicing lay Buddhist he is committed to developing new and innovative ways of integrating scholastic education with the dharma. Jhabindra Subedi is one of the founding board members of the Community Gönpa Education Initiative Nepal (CGEIN). He is Chairperson of the CGEIN board.

Acharya Pema Rinchen Palmo Lama is the principal of Arya Tara School (ATS) that was founded by the world-renowned singer Ani Choying Dolma. The school provides free quality secular education along with traditional Buddhist knowledge, food, and shelter to girls from remote Himalayan villages. Acharya Pema herself was a student of the school. She has completed her Masters degree in Buddhist philosophy from Central University Of Tibetan Studies (CUTS), Saranath, Varanasi, India. After her graduation she has been investing her energy in promoting education for girls in Nepal. Acharya Pema is one of the founding board members of the Community Gönpa Education Initiative Nepal (CGIEN) and is treasurer of the organization.

Geshe Thubten Jinpa is a teacher and disciplinarian (gekoe) at Kopan Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal. Kopan was founded by Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche and currently has more than 400 monks engaged in both academic and religious studies. It also attracts many international visitors who wish to study Buddhism. Geshe Jinpa was born in the remote Rolwaling Valley of Northern Nepal. He joined Kopan Monastery in 1991 and completed his formal education and Buddhist philosophical studies there. He completed his geshe degree (equivalent to a PhD in Buddhist studies) in 2010. He teaches dharma in the monastery and in communities outside of Kathmandu. He also travels aboard to teach. Geshe la is an active promoter of animal rights and vegetarianism and has directed the documentary film “108 Yak Journey of Love and Freedom.” Geshe Thubten Jinpa is a founding board member and secretary of the Community Gönpa Education Initiative Nepal (CGEIN).

Acharya Wangchuk Tenzin serves as Principal of H.E. Thrangu Rinpoche’s School for Himalayan Children (SMD). The school provides free education to both monastic and non-monastic children from high Himalayan villages up through grade 10. Wangchuk Tenzin is himself a graduate of the school. He has also completed his foundation practices, shedra, and retreat. As a shedra and a school graduate, and now a school leader, he has an excellent understating of dharma, scholastic education, and how the two can serve together for the next generation of Nepal’s monastic and lay dharma practitioners. Acharya Wangchuck Tenzin is one of the founding board members of the Community Gönpa Education Initiative Nepal (CGEIN).

Ratna Lal Tamang is the former principal of Nyingma Palyul Urgen Dorjee Secondary School in Pharping, Nepal. The school is affiliated with Palyul UDC Monastery. He now serves as Chairperson of Palyul Clinic Medical Assistance. Ratna Lal was born in Sindhuli, Nepal where he completed high school. He completed his BA at the Shikarapur Multiple Campus in Kathmandu, his M.Ed. in Education from the Mahendra Ratna Campus of Tribhuvan University, and is currently completing his Buddhist philosophical studies (sheda). Ratna Lal Tamang is one of the founding board member of the Community Gönpa Education Initiative Nepal (CGEIN).

Venerable Tenzin Norbu Lama is from Tsum Valley in the high Himalayas of Nepal. He entered Thrangu Monastery in 1997 as monk under the guidance of H. E. Thrangu Rinpoche. After receiving basic dharma instruction he joined Shree Mangal Dvip School in 1999 as a student, and later entered the retreat center in Namo Buddha affiliated with Thrangu Monastery. Venerable Tenzin Norbu entered the Vajra Vidya Institute for Higher Buddhist Studies in Varanasi, India in 2009 and completed his Lopen (Masters) degree in Buddhist Philosophy in 2015. He was appointed as a teacher at Shree Mangal Dvip School for Himalayan Children in Boudha, Kathmandu by H. E. Thrangu Rinpoche. He currently serves as the school’s Vice Principal. Venerable Tenzin Norbu Lama is one of the founding board member of the Community Gönpa Education Initiative Nepal (CGEIN).

Daniel Tamang was born in Kathmandu and educated in Nepal and the USA. He is a consultant in business investment, management, and marketing and a founder of Kathmandu Mutual, a business consulting firm in Kathmandu. He handles public relations, marketing and promotion for the Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival (KIMFF). He has a strong social commitment to achieving equitable education access for Nepal’s underserved children and youth. Daniel Tamang is one of the founding board member of the Community Gönpa Education Initiative Nepal (CGEIN).

Mingmar Tamang is an experienced trekking guide and basecamp manager. Mingmar was born in a village in the Solokhumbu region of Nepal where he completed his early schooling before moving to Kathmandu. He completed high school, college and university studies in Kathmandu with a bachelor’s degree in Social Work. Mingmar is committed to the development of trekking programs that contribute to local development in the high Himalayan communities of Nepal through Zambuling Expedition. Mingmar Tamang is one of the founding board members of the Community Gönpa Education Initiative Nepal (CGEIN). He is Office Administrator for CGEIN.

Dr. King Beach serves as a director of Sociocultural Analytics, LLC, a consulting firm that specializes in working with complex education, health-related, and social scientific projects. King has over 30 years of research and development consulting experience with INGOs and local non-profit organizations. He headed the graduate program in Sociocultural and International Development Education Studies at Florida State University. King’s academic training is in developmental psychology and cultural anthropology applied to education, and he is an alumnus of Columbia University and the City University of New York Graduate Center. Prior to graduate training he served as a U.S. Peace Corps educator in Nepal and has been involved in educational development in Nepal for the past 45 years. He is also a practicing Buddhist. King Beach is the advisor/founder of Community Gönpa Education Initiative Nepal (CGEIN).