~ 1 ~

- Rohit Singhal

Asha for Education - Boston/MIT PO Box 398080, San Francisco, CA 94139-8080

Asha Kiran

To catalyze socioeconomic change in India through the education of underprivileged children.

Contents

Editorial 2

Join and Support Asha 3

Individual Highlights

Team Aid Asha 4

Upcoming Events 5

Project Updates

Vigyan Vahini 6

Kamlakar Trust 7

Navsarjan 8

Education Beyond Barriers 9

New Project 10

Events (July – Dec) 11

Financial Report 2014 12

2

December 2014

~ 2 ~

Mission Statement: To catalyze socio-economic change in India through education of underprivileged children.

Nearly 20 years ago, students from India in the Boston area got together and began talking about how they can help disadvantaged children in India. They had benefited from good opportunities. But millions and millions of children in India did not have the same opportunities and were doomed to a lifetime of hardship, servitude, and disempowerment. What could the Boston students do to help? They decided to start a chapter of Asha for Education, an organization focused on education. And so, in 1995, was born Asha-Boston. Much has happened since that first meeting full of hope and plans and dreams. Nearly 60 projects and over 10,000 students later we continue to be committed to the cause. In the last year our projects have done well, and some have taken on new initiatives. One initiative is implementation of RTE (Right to Education, Act of 2009), a high priority for Asha as well. We are supporting an RTE awareness initiative in Andhra Pradesh. In Tamil Nadu we support an Asha Fellow who is implementing his innovative ideas to help students learn new concepts. We partially support a tribal school deep in the forests around the Kabini River in Karnataka, and in the same taluk we support the operations of a mobile Science van to improve the understanding of Science. In Gujarat the group we support tackles deep rooted caste based issues, empowering a generation through education. Across all projects we work to improve government schools, train teachers, and bring in local innovation to tackle the problems of education. Our commitment to our project partners is for the long term. It often goes from K-12 and extended to college if required. In the last 20 years we have seen some real successes, students who have gone on to achieve tremendous success in their chosen path of life. However, socio-economic change through education takes years. There continue to be many challenges. Caste is still an issue. Quality of education in government school, which happens to be the only option for many, is not up to par. Rapid technology changes in the world threaten to leave poorer regions in India far behind. A key challenge is the quality of education. Excessive dependence on rote memorization as a learning method has negatively impacted education. Students graduate from high school, even college, without learning professional skills. We are working hard to change this across all our projects. New learning techniques, teacher training, and emphasis on understanding the world around them with field trips and lectures, are just some of the initiatives we are encouraging our project partners to undertake. We are already beginning to see results. Students who learn to think critically and objectively are confident, articulate, and understand problem solving. These are critical for success. Please visit: ASHA FOR EDUCATION– BOSTON: http://www.ashanet.org/boston/index.php

- Melli Annamalai

~ 3 ~

Join and Support Asha

Donate to Asha

o Make a tax-deductible donation. Asha for Education is registered with IRS under Section

501(c)(3).

www.ashanet.org/boston/donate

Consider using your company’s matching program

o Create wedding/birthday/event registries at Registry of Hope

Now you can make Asha for Education a part of the special occasion in the lives of

your near and dear ones. Some local volunteers have graciously done so for birthdays

and weddings.

www.registryofhope.org

o Support Asha by shopping on Amazon.com

http://smile.amazon.com/ch/77-0459884

VOLUNTEER in the following areas:

o General Coordination

o Project Coordination

o Events Coordination

o Publicity

o Fundraising

o Marathon Program

o Web Designing

Subscribe to our mailing list: boston-members+subscribe@ashanet.org

Attend chapter meetings

o We meet on second Sundays of every month

Publicize Asha for Education’s work

o Put a flyer in your community

o Invite Asha for Education volunteers for speaking engagements

o Organize fund-raiser event

Find us on social media network here at

https://www.facebook.com/bostonmit

http://twitter.com/ashabostonmit

~ 4 ~

Team Aid ASHA

In its 12th year, TeamAidAsha running program (TAA) is a “tried and tested” program in making ordinary people into extraordinary athletic super stars. ~35 runners participated in the 2014 TAA season raising ~$60,000 benefiting “Asha for Education” and AID. Pictures say a thousand words. So, I share a few pictures to give you a flavor of our TAA running program!

Happy Running!

- Maulik Nagri

Race Day

TAA

Info

rma

tio

n S

essi

on

Fu

nd

rais

ing

Clin

ic

Resources: http://www.teamaidasha.org

~ 5 ~

We get TAA runners and volunteers largely through word of mouth. If you have a friends or family members or colleagues who are running enthusiasts, please connect them to us for the 2015 TAA program at www.teamaidasha.org

Happy Running for a cause!

- Maulik Nagri

Upcoming Events

December 14, 2014 – Holiday Party and Monthly Meeting January 11, 2015 – Monthly Meeting

Ra

ce D

ay

A

fter Ra

ce Celeb

ratio

n

~ 6 ~

Project Updates

Vigyana Vahini a.k.a Science Van

Why is the color of the sky blue? Why is Pluto not a planet any longer? Why can’t light pass through opaque objects, but other electromagnetic waves can?

Students in many schools in India are lucky if they go to a school that encourages them to ask questions Luckier still are students who can get answers to these questions. And the luckiest of them all are students who can have in-depth discussions on these topics with their peers. The challenges of teaching Science are manifold in India’s schools. The high school curriculum includes extensive experimentation but most government schools do not have even the most basic Science lab. Teaching is typically memorization and regurgitating in the exam. For example, students learn about light without conducting a single experiment showing basic principles reflection and refraction of light. They learn about plant structure looking at black and white drawings in textbooks, without any hands on experience in dissecting an actual plant. Access to libraries and any kind of lab equipment is non-existent. The essence of Science, of questioning the world around you, is missing. Teachers themselves have graduated from similar schools, so their knowledge is also often limited and the problem perpetuates. The need to intervene is urgent. Several initiatives have been undertaken in Asha projects to address this. Since the schools don’t have Science labs, a mobile Science van travels from school to school taking with it Science lab equipment and staff trained to show experiments with it. The staff works with the teachers to demonstrate experiments to students. Seeing an experiment is so much better than just reading about it. This is an initiative of Vignyana Vahini by the Swami Viveka Youth Movement in HD Kote taluk in Mysore district. In conjunction, Vignyana Vahini is also making it possible for the students themselves to do experiments. They have persuaded the government to provide Science kits to schools. They work with teachers to help them buy equipment with government funds. For example, we have recently ordered a set of 50 cent microscopes (from the Foldoscope project) for some schools. An even more interesting approach is the development of life size models. Imagine a playground where each structure demonstrates a scientific principle. Principles of an oscillating pendulum illustrated by swing sets. Speed of a ball rolling down an incline demonstrated with a slide. Even the few Science museums in urban areas do not have space to explore scientific equipment. Providing such playgrounds in rural areas has enormous impact. Asha for Education’s Project Page: http://www.ashanet.org/projects/project-view.php?p=1095

- Melli Annamalai

~ 7 ~

Kamalakar Memorial Trust Kamalakar Memorial Trust is a charitable organization that runs a variety of programs and educational institutions including Vikas Bharati School (VBS), Nagole, Hyderabad, with an intention to provide formal educational facilities for children from slums and poor migrant families. In partnership with Pratham, an NGO in India, VBS has been attempting to reduce learning deficit for average and slow learner students in higher classes. Partnership with Pratham was explored on a pilot basis for classes 6 and 7 this year. Pratham provides: o Teaching aids including videos, presentations, and other

activity-based teaching material o Teacher training o Education support in form of conducting exams and quizzes

as well as monitoring progress of students

With the implementation of Pratham teaching aids, students of all learning ability levels have been more interactive in classes and learning Math and Science with keen interest. Challenges do remain in being able to expand this program to other grades in the school. Since the methodology is primarily activity-based, the school management is finding it cost prohibitive to expand the

program to other grades given the current level of funding available for school. Similar to prior years, VBS organized various co-curricular and extra-curricular activities this year as well. VBS students regularly compete and win prizes in various extracurricular competitions conducted in Hyderabad.

Project Page: http://www.ashanet.org/projects/project-view.php?p=812

- Priya Mocherla

Students Attending an Industrial Tour

Students participating in “Swachh Bharat” campaign

~ 8 ~

Navsarjan Please read feedback from Martin Macwan, Founder of Navsarjan Trust, on Asha Boston Chapter involvement “Asha Boston Chapter has played a very important role in supporting Navsarjan's mission to eliminate discrimination and ensuring human rights for all. Our partnership with Asha-Boston has ensured that deprived and poor children get crucial financial support, so that they can pursue their studies with dignity and self-respect. The partnership with Asha-Boston has also enabled Navsarjan to support

new initiatives in the “Human Rights Value Education” space. One such example is the “Chhote Bhim Drama Competition” that gives more space and encouragement to children who are deprived of these opportunities in their village schools.” “Navsarjan Trust, a leading organization India for its pioneering work on fighting the discrimination based on caste and gender decided to step in the area of primary education, when it encountered in its work, the caste discrimination practiced against Dalit children in public schools. Furthermore, Navsarjan also learnt that a major source for continuing discrimination is such prejudices being interwoven in the textbooks and story books of moral education. To counter prejudices in education, Navsarjan set up 3 residential schools (grades 5 thru 8) in 2005-2006 in 3 different locations of Gujarat, funded by community donations. “ “Partnership with Asha-Boston has allowed us (Navsarjan) sustain and grow the student count at these 3 residential schools. Contributions from Asha-Boston have helped students to reduce their education cost, especially ensuring girls are not deprived of education for want of money. Asha-Boston has also supported Navsarjan’s other education initiatives. Navsarjan has set up for children ~600 village libraries that provide to children books that are free from prejudices. Also, the “Chhote Bhim Drama Competition” encourages children to read more and more books - or face the books - as an alternative to Facebook!” “For Navsarjan, our association with Asha is very important. While Navsarjan has dealt with large funding agencies, our partnership with Asha-Boston is important to us, because it involves small but personal contributions of so many committed individuals.” Asha for Education’s Project Page: http://www.ashanet.org/projects/project-view.php?p=840 Read more on next page about Navsarjan’s initiatives in the article featuring Mr. Martin Macwan’s lecture.

~ 9 ~

Education Beyond Barriers

ASHA Boston chapter organized a lecture “Triumphs of Dalit People against Discrimination” by Mr. Martin Macwan, founder of Navsarjan, on September 14, 2014 at MIT. Mr. Macwan started his lecture by focusing on how Navsarjan’s educational initiatives bring about positive socio-economic change in the life of Dalit people. He stated that Navsarjan started residential schools for Dalit children who faced severe discrimination in Government schools. In addition, he talked about Navsarjan’s vocational schools that have provided employment related training to 10,000 men and women. Navsarjan has started ~600 village libraries to provide with supplemental reading material to ~25,000 children and community members. Furthermore, he talked proudly of the “Chhotte Bhim Drama Competition” that gives children from 200 villages an opportunity to showcase their creativity through theatre.

Resources: Youtube Lecture Recording: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZH4HxkJIn8 Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/512516938878404/

- Maulik Nagri

In addition, he spoke how Navsarjan engages in diverse activities besides education: advocacy and empowerment, land rights, women rights, youth awareness, minimum wage implementation, and local governance issues.

Mr. Macwan also shared how he started his life journey.

Motivated by personal tragedy, Mr. Macwan founded

Navsarjan in 1989 to champion the rights of Dalit people.

Serving as Navsarjan’s Director until 2004, he expanded the

organization’s reach to cover 3,000 villages. In addition, he

has also served as the Convener of the National Campaign on

Dalit Human Rights. In 2000, he was awarded the prestigious

“Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights” Award.

As a speaker, he shared with an enraptured audience of ~30 people a wealth of first-hand stories impacting the lives of socially and economically discriminated people of India. The lecture ended with engaging questions from the audience for more than 45 minutes.

~ 10 ~

New Projects

Friends of Children “Friends of Children” is a Pune based organization that has been providing financial support to meritorious students who are unable to continue their higher education due to financial difficulties. Apart from financial assistance, they also organize various practical workshops focusing on life, behavioral and recruitment skills to better prepare students for employment. The majority of the students sponsored are from rural areas where it is harder for needy students to get the assistance they need to pursue an education. Upon graduation, many of their students have achieved successful careers in the IT industry and are now supporting their families. Over the past decade, they have assisted more than 2500 students with 280 students sponsored for 2013-14. Their plans for the future are to sponsor more students and to expand their workshops that are not directly sponsored by them. o FoC provides scholarships to meritorious 300 students for college education (BCom, BSc, etc.) o Started in 2002-2003 as a Trust; has 20 active volunteers (mostly working professionals) in Pune o Students are selected partly on merit and partly on need basis

Project Page: www.ashanet.org/projects/project-view.php?p=1215

- Shekhar Sundar

~ 11 ~

Ensemble….! (Events July – December, 2014)

Asha for Education Lecture, Boston University, Boston MA, November 6, 2014

Hindi Manch Felicitation for Asha for Education volunteers, Maynard MA, June 29, 2014

India Independence Day celebrations, Hatch Shell, Boston MA, August 17, 2014

South Asia Coalition Dinner, Cambridge MA, October 18, 2014

Asha for Education Lecture, Brandeis University, Waltham MA, November 22, 2014

~ 12 ~

Financial Report 2014i

Asha Boston Financial Summary

Beginning Balance $119,2543 General Donations $42,955 Project Specific Donations $540 Project Disbursements ($68,678) Admin Expensesii ($478) Event Expensesiii ($4,023) 2014 Marathon Event Donation $22,835 Other Event Donations $380

Current Balance $112,785

i The numbers are from January 1, 2014 to November 25, 2014. ii Admin expenses include basic costs incurred to run the chapter. For example mailbox charges, equipment rental etc.

iii Event expenses include costs incurred to arrange an event. For example rental charges, printing charges etc.

- Chaitanya Misal

Donations Summary

General Donations Project Specific Donations

2014 Marathon Event Donation Other Event Donations