Here are a few of them ...
Tribal Empowerment Project
Asha Stamford
The Butterfly Edufields initiative was started by some IIT-IIM alumni in 2005 to make learning easy, enriching, and engaging. Their learning-by-doing programs are aimed at students from 1st to 10th grades and map to the CBSE curriculum, ensuring concepts are learned for life. This initiative offers hands-on learning aids to enhance children’s conceptual understanding of science and math.
Asha Stamford volunteers became acquainted with Butterfly Edufields through a session at a two-day workshop for the teachers and students of Tribal Empowerment (TEP) school, Manipur, which the chapter has supported since 2003. The chapter helps with two persistent and pressing needs: improving the quality of teaching and diversifying the approaches to learning.
First, the chapter voted to fund the workshop, which was treated as a pilot project. Based on the success of the results, it was decided that products should be bought for TEP and other schools.
More here
Asha Toledo
This school for mentally challenged children was started in 1998 by Asha Toledo project partner T. Prema in rural Rajapalayam (near Sivakasi). Through years of painstaking hard work, she transformed this school from a little operation with just two students to a concrete building with 67 students, almost of whom come from extremely poor families that cannot afford to take care of their special needs, let alone pay school fees. In addition to free lunches, snacks and transportation, the school provides physiotherapy, speech therapy, and special educational programs.
Asha Toledo supported Shaaron School in 2014 by financing the purchase of teaching aids, physiotherapy equipment, a computer, and furniture while in 2015 Asha supported the salaries of special educators. Our volunteer, Amar Ramesh Babu visited the school and verified the purchase and proper use of these items. Based on his report, the focus of the school has now shifted to further improvement, surpassing the basic survival issues that have been taken care by support from Asha.
More here
Asha Atlanta, Zurich and Redlands
SAve Children SAve Society (SACSAS) Academy provides quality education and healthcare for free. The education program is aimed at children in villages who cannot travel to state-run schools. It opened its first unit in 2003 and now runs five schools educating 500 children. Asha Zurich financially supports its school in New Dampi and administers its Loilamkot and Wangoo schools.
The New Dampi school teaches 171 students, from pre-nursery to 6th grade, from nine villages. The school opened in 2009 when the project was supported by Asha Houston. Asha Zurich came onboard in 2010, paying 50% of the recurring costs comprising of teachers’ salaries, textbooks, study aids, uniforms, school maintenance and 20 merit-based scholarships.
Surjit Kumar Yumkhaibam is the Academy’s on-ground coordinator. He manages all five schools. The SACSAS model is built on the understanding and cooperation of the executive committee, the village guardian committee, and the teachers. The village guardian committee protects school premises against militant groups active in the area and also takes care of day-to-day administration. This is essential to bolster a spirit of self-governance and a sense of responsibility among parents and villagers. The committee also monitors students’ and teachers’ attendance.
For the last six years, Surjit Kumar has been partly funding the schools and teachers’ salaries by running a charitable hospital.
Education Methodology: The Academy focuses on basic education for children. The books and teaching techniques are the same those used in the government schools. Hence, children passing out the Academy can directly enter mainstream schools. For students’ all-round development, sports meets are held after each quarterly exam. These have been a great source of motivation and entertainment with winning children collecting books as prizes. The schools also conduct regular meetings with parents and guardian committees, to address problems faced by children and also impart a sense of responsibility among benefited villagers.
Asha Atlanta volunteer Tapomayukh Banerjee visited the project for two days in July 2015. He interacted with the children and was amazed by their enthusiasm. He strongly recommended that Asha continue to support the project.
Bhagwati Sarla Paliwal Education Society (BSPES)
BSPES’ school was started by the Paliwal family in 1986 to educate and empower girls of Jattari, a small town in Aligarh district. Agriculture is the main livelihood of the area and daughters are sent to work in the fields rather than to school while sons are allowed an education. Girls are discriminated against everywhere, in and outside their homes. In this difficult environment, BSPES educates 600 students at nominal monthly fees, ranging from INR 70 ($1) for 1st and 2nd grades to INR 260 ($4) for the 12th grade. Fees are even lower for students whose attendance record is greater than 90% in the previous year.
BSPES has all the basic infrastructure in place. The school is built on 2.5 acres of land and has 32 classrooms. There are 30 teachers with Bachelors and Masters degrees. Two hand-pumps provide drinking water while electricity comes from a 2.5 KW solar panel system. Transport via school van costs INR 350 ($5.30) a month. The library is being redesigned and renovated by another NGO. Students participate in activities like sports, girls’ guide and indoor games.
BSPES goes the extra mile for its students. For example, a bicycle sharing program enables 87 students to avoid walking 4-5 km to & from school; some students have been provided with solar lanterns; and breakfast is available for students that are between 4 and 10 years old. The school is supported by Asha’s Boston/MIT chapter.
More here
