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Please consider investing in India's future. To delay may mean to forget.
Amount:   USD

Mission And Goals

- To provide access to primary/secondary school and college education for poor children in India, based on need and merit.

- To ensure that education is actually related to the real life need of making a living.

 

Additional Information

  • Alumni - Vinodhini
  • Alumni - Sheik Mohammed
  • Alumni - Mohamed Thareek
Ignite: College and Diploma Scholarships

OPEN provides college/diploma scholarships for about 100 children annually through the IGNITE scholarship program. The children in this program come from poor backgrounds, with family monthly incomes of Rs.8000 on average. In spite of the financial hardship, these children average about 85% in their Higher Secondary school completion exams. Most of them are the first in their family to go to college or polytechnic. A total of over 800 children have been sponsored by OPEN thus far.

Note on program history: This scholarship program was started by Sushila Joseph, Sathya Nagaraj and Meenakshi Sudarshan who founded their own NGO, IGNITE. OPEN was one of the funders of IGNITE, and eventually the IGNITE founders became part of OPEN and the scholarship program is now run by OPEN.

Program details

OPEN sponsors children mainly for degree programs that enable them to enter the workforce soon after completion of their studies; programs such as:

  • Two- and Three-year Polytechnic Vocational Diplomas in Engineering
  • Four-year Engineering Degree - B.E or B.Tech.
  • B.Sc. and B.Com. three-year Degrees

The workflow is as follows:

  • Applications for the program are solicited from schools that OPEN is active in, such as Gen.Cariappa vocational school, and the various schools that host Vidyarambam English classes
  • After an initial screen, OPEN members Meena, Sashi and Sathya visit the homes of the final candidates to make sure they are indeed in monetary need
  • Pay the college/diploma fees for the children, to a maximum of INR 25,000 per year
  • Follow up with their semester exams & results and continue the scholarship only for students in good academic standing
  • Monitor the children's education through to completion
  • Offer Spoken English and Personality Development classes for students so they are prepared for interviews with communications skills, professional resumes etc. The target is to offer these programs once a semester, and provide special assistance with resume-writing and mock interviews for final year students.

The program aims to make these students responsible, independent individuals who will be an asset to our society and our country.

Academic Year 2018-19

  • Total students: 89
  • Final year students:
  • Total number graduated on time:
  • Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs:
  • OPEN Budget: $14,000

Academic Year 2017-18 Results

  • Total students: 120
  • Final year students: 46
  • Total number graduated on time: 39 (85%)
  • Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs: 20
  • OPEN Spend: $16,100

Academic Year 2016-17 Results

  • Total students: 130
  • Final year students: 57
  • Total number graduated on time: 48 (84%)
  • Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs: 27
  • OPEN Spend: $18,200

Academic Year 2015-16 Results

  • Total students: 130
  • Final year students: 36
  • Total number graduated on time: 30 (83%)
  • Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs: 21
  • OPEN Spend: $22,750

Success Stories


Family Backgrounds

The average family income of these students is INR 8000 per month. Students typically come from blue-collar backgrounds, and are the first in their families to go to college. The photos below, taken during needs verification, show one family living in a single-room home and another one in a home with asbestos siding and thatched roof.

Ignite scholarship home visit


Ignite home visit


Impact of personality development classes

The video below shows one of the children who came to our career counseling sessions in Feb-March 2016. The children were coached in resume-writing, interviewing, and public speaking, and on general career options for their particular skills.


Interview Preparation

The video below shows one of the children who came to our career counseling sessions in late 2018 going through a mock interview.


Volunteers coordinating the IGNITE program

  • Sashikala Krishna
  • Meenakshi Sudarshan
  • Sathya Nagaraj
  • Sridhar Sockalingam
  • Vidya Sridhar
 
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