UDAAN
Background of UDAAN
(empowering meritorious but underserved students through holistic education and individual mentorship to become enablers for equal opportunity in the corporate world)
Before talking of our solution, it is necessary to understand how we have reached here.
We started the empowerment project by adopting slum schools for a period of 5 years and through a host of programs tried to bring them to a certain level. Programs include mid-day meals, teaching Science, Math, English, Technology and Life skills (STEML); training the teachers and the principals; Mentorship and Scholarships for bright students who wish to continue their education beyond class 10 (almost 90-95% drop out) etc.
But we found that we could only work with the students for 2 hours in a week maximum. This is insufficient to build their soft skills, social emotional intelligence, English, IT, humanities as well as increase their academic performance.
Pilot program
We tested the same through a small pilot by opening a centre in Deonar, Mumbai in December 2020 with some 60 students who were given this exposure for almost a year and the results were heartening. It was designed for 3 months and seeing the confidence in the students, we extended the program initially to 6 months and then to a year. Simultaneously we sat down to design the program, meeting a host of stakeholders, studying similar programs and brainstorming amongst the team members. We hope to build a solid model within the next few years in Mumbai and then plan to scale it and take it across India.
Our target audience are the underserved meritorious students from economically disadvantaged families. The students will be sourced from the non-aided and partially aided schools in the slums of Mumbai. We have contacted the students through the schools & colleges and through other NGO’s working with such students. We distributed the forms and brochures through these and held awareness sessions for all stakeholders so that they can understand the program better.
We framed a rigorous selection process. Some 200 students applied for Cohort-1 out of which 45 have been selected after multiple numbers of interviews including that of parents and home visits etc. In the Cohort -2 we received some 75 applications and 20 students have been shortlisted. The knowledge partners have been selected and now the first batch is being onboarded and we will launch the same as soon after the Schools and Colleges open i.e., in the third week of June 2022. So, from thinking to designing and then implementing the selection part it has been a great journey and achievement since the last 2 years.
The Future
There are many nonprofits who are working in skilling and educating children and youth through various innovative techniques. But as per our knowledge nobody is trying to build resilient livelihoods through such a long and comprehensive intervention.
It is vastly different to what we have been doing till now and hugely challenging. It is a leap of faith to adopt children and youth for a period of 7 and 2 years respectively to train them holistically and make them job ready. Until now vocational and livelihood courses are generally for 3-6 months or for a maximum one year. This involves multiple tie ups and planning for each year, making the program so enticing and meaningful so that the beneficiaries don’t drop off.
In the 3 years, we will firm up the program with the learnings that we will get with multiple cohorts happening and in 5 years, we will be ready with a solid model and we will be ready to scale the program in other cities and centres.
The next 12 months are crucial as we formally launch our most ambitious project till date. In the slums it is a challenge to retain the students for a full term and due to various reasons, a certain percentage of students, be in school, college or vocational courses, tend to drop out. Since our project is stretched to 7 years and 2 years respectively, it will be hugely challenging to retain all of them, though while screening, we have taken enough precautions to ensure that this does not happen. Secondly, we have to make sure we implement the curricula as designed by us and that we should not get derailed by operational difficulties because generally the first year’s performance will make or mar the project. Constant reviews and feedback sessions with the team are being planned and the management team too will be closely involved with the Udaan Team in the implementation.
JUNIOR UDAAN PROGRAM
The children in slums and in lower middle class, whose parents are working, have nobody to guide them once they come back from school. This centre will serve as an after school kind of a place where such children can come and study. However it is not meant to be a tuition class but a place where the education offered in school will be supplemented by innovative teaching practices and where the emphasis will be on understanding concepts and not on completing the syllabus. This will create the joy of learning and will help them become better learners and do well in schools.
SENIOR UDAAN PROGRAM
These are children who are on the verge of deciding their career. They will be chosen after a rigorous process of selection and those who are passionate toward achieving their goals will be provided all inputs so that they can achieve their dream career. There will be some core subjects that will be taught. Apart from that, there will be highly reflective workshops, discussions, meeting with role models and exposure to various art forms (writing, music, dance, film making etc.) which will enable these highly talented youth to decide their passion and follow it. Their background and financial health may not permit them otherwise to follow their dreams but the Udaan fellowship will nurture their talent and allow them to flex their wings and fly as high as they want to attain their dreams.
We plan to run two Cohorts every year:-
First Cohort
Children will be selected annually from school (9th grade), with the plan to train them for 7 years i.e. till their graduation.
Second Cohort
Children will be selected annually from college (2nd year) with the plan to train them for 2 years.
Every year, there will be new Cohorts and they will be provided with the following proposed resources:
School / College fees, Tuition support and grooming classes. The tuition support will be provided at our Centre so that they don’t have to go anywhere else. Selected students will spend 3 hours every day at our centres after school/ college. We have tied up with tuition teachers and a knowledge partner which will take care of the grooming part including:-
Connecting school to careers of the future, Future visioning, Understanding Strengths and Areas of Development, connecting these competencies to academic performance, Identifying Gaps and figuring how they can be managed for bettering academic performance
Goal setting, English Proficiency, Verbal communication, written communication, Personal development plan, One On One mentoring with a mentor, Career visioning, Managing time and scheduling, Managing stress, Professionalism and accountability
Understanding their skills and career fundamentals, connecting skills to the jobs of the future, Mini projects based on skill track, Skill training, Grooming and etiquette
Emotional intelligence, Leadership skills, Resume writing, Interviewing, Networking and building connections, Professionalism and Accountability sessions with industry mentors, creating a professional digital presence, Searching & applying for Jobs, Overcoming Fears, 1:1 mock interview and a corporate partner connect.
Though the number of students covered initially may be less, all of them have the potential to be role models for the others in their schools and colleges. Their success will have a multiplier effect. Already we are receiving requests to take in more students.