1 Asha for Education - Providing Hope for Tomorrow

2 Why Basic Education? Lack of Education Poverty Dependence We need to break this Cycle : 1)Pre-primary & Primary education 2)Back up coaching for students going to former schools 3)Helping disadvantaged kids 4)Supporting the NGOs dedicated to grass-root work 5)Raising awareness 6)Girl Empowerment to avoid teenage marriage

3 Asha for Education MISSION: To catalyze socio-economic change in India through education of underprivileged children. Guiding Principles -100% volunteer run - No hierarchy - Non-political and non-religious - Zero Overhead - Credibility ; Visibility Unofficial Long Term Goal : Every children in India to be educated by 2047!!!

4 Asha for Education  Over 66 Chapters Globally  1000s of Active Volunteers  Raised over $3M in 2011

Story of “Asha For Education” Born in 1991 (Berkeley) Student-driven and Professional –driven Survived multiple recessions and with a good growth rate Events  Social  Cultural  Sports  Volunteer base (>1000)  Work-An-Hour Tradition in July- Sep (since 1998, Raised ~5% of total AfE funds) 5 Asha Logo

Some Amazing Facts about AfE!! Number of Donors so far : (A distributed fundraising) Funds disbursed : >$23M & >800 projects (~220 current) Chapter: 66 (6 in India & ~50 in US) ~10 Chapter has Team Asha Marathon program with some having Biking, Ultra Marathons & Mountain-Climbing!! >1000 followers in Facebook (Won a $25K in 2011 CCG) Biggest Chapters : Seattle & SV ( Yearly >500K fundraising) None gets paid i.e. everything raised from Volunteer Hours All project documents visible in open space Has a good tradition of some Volunteers going back to India and work with an NGO directly or start One. 6

Who you are and What you can be!! Decide your commitment Hours (1 hr/ month; 10 hr/month …..) Decide what you are passionate about (Study, project stewarding, Raising awareness, social/cultural/sports Or coordination) You:  You are Intelligent: Share your ideas in chapter  You are smart: Work with project partner to give you inputs  You are passionate about the cause: Others need to know that  You are a believer: Believe in the possibility of a better world  You are popular: Get your friends in this cause  You like challenges: There is none bigger than a social challenge  You are a learner: Will learn a lot in this process  Hope for the best 7

How can we help from a Distance!!! Asha Atlanta8 The same way we support our family or friends (Care, Love, Practical Ideas and Diligence) A chapter virtually adopts the kids in the projects and make sure they have a better future Depending on your personal commitments, anything works!!  Donations (An effective shortcut)  Inducing/raising Donations (Few words with your friends/family/colleagues)  Some non-technical hours in your schedule (A different fun time)  Be a steward and be a direct contact for people making the change  Find time during your visit to India and see a grass-root project  Have your interests in sync with fundraising : Social/ Cultural/Sports Never ever underestimate your own potential (We can take more challenges than the ones at work/school)

9 Projects & Fundraising – How they work?

10 Now What!!  We have a good name – Raise awareness based on that  Student community to grow – Students have lots of potentials (donation is just a small part of what we can do)  Finding project-specific donors among professionals  Separate out action groups and divide the tasks  Have regular meetings to share ideas and unite the group  There is no hierarchy – so own a task and execute  Be mentally prepared to do some manual work with less short-term and amazing long-term return (Visit a project in India, you will know)  Participate in Asha Wide Activities

Current Asha Wide Focus and Initiatives As volunteers at AfE we all know and have been discussing the issues like poor enrollment rates in schools, high drop out rates, child labor, below-par learning levels of kids, sustainability of Asha projects etc. Long term Plans for different Types of Projects Effective Knowledge sharing via calls & WIKI Focus Groups NREGA (Students need a stable family income to continue their studies) QED (Students need to learn the right way) RTE & SSA (How it gets implemented) RTI (Get the work done by Government) Teacher Training (A good teacher is more than just a requirement) Project Partner Feedback (They are the leaders) 11

12 Action Items – Project Team: New Proposals Review scope, goals and credibility of proposal Check FCRA status (permanent?/need support letter for one-time application?) Assign Project Steward / liaison and/or Reviewer Proposal presented by Reviewer/Steward Call between Project Partner and Chapter Project group review (Meeting/Conference Calls) Final decision after Site Visit Coordinate between project, Asha-Atlanta and Asha-Central Time Commitment = hrs (Time Line 6 -8 weeks)

13 Action Items – Project Team : Existing Projects Monthly/Bi-monthly updates from Project Stewards Annual Site Visit and Financial report (before each disbursal) Review / Revise Budget Discuss status in group meetings Time Commitment = hrs/ year

14 Overall Project Steward Responsibilities (1) Act as a liasion between Asha-Atlanta and project Gather information and present to the group Obtain revised budget and proposal, fund utilization report Plan for Yearly Site Visit Submit the Project Checklist containing Bank information Approval Minutes Link (uploaded in wiki or project admin – ask your Chapter Coordinator for Credential)wikiproject admin Proposal link from project admin Site Visit link from project admin

15 Overall Project Steward Responsibilities (2) One Site visit by Asha Volunteer every 24 months (rural + City) One site visit by reliable source every 12 months for City Asha project template every 3 years One call between steward and partner every 6 months (documented in project page) Funds utilization report must be obtained before next disbursal At least 6 months’ notice for any disruption of funds For new project, chapter-partner call must FCRA requirements (Mandated) and no project specific fundraising before obtaining one-time or permanent FCRA Receipt required within 1 months of sending funds. Aware of Asha Volunteer & Steward Manual guidelines

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