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Atma is excited to introduce Avanti Fellows: one of our newest Atma Partners.

Avanti Fellows is unique to Atma because they focus on supporting students in accessing higher educational opportunities. Avanti uses a fellowship system to help students from low-income homes in gaining the access and opportunity to study at India’s best undergraduate institutes.

Avanti Fellows receive free coaching for the IIT JEE (IIT Joint Entrance Examination) through Avanti’s coaching partners in 7 different cities. Each student is paired with a current IIT student and Avanti volunteer. Avanti volunteers act to support and mentor Avanti Fellows over a two year period through face-to-face meetings, doubt solving sessions and counselling.

To select their Fellows, Avanti engages over 150 student volunteers in 7 cities across India who work together to find, train and mentor bright students. This training and mentorship process allows some of India’s brightest disadvantaged students to clear competitive entrance exams and succeed during their time in college.

In 2011, over 3,000 students from over 400 schools across India took Avanti’s selection test. Of these students, 115 were selected as Avanti Fellows after a rigorous process that included one-on-one interviews with the students and their families.

Atma is excited about partnering with an NGO that focuses on higher education and works on the belief that every student should have the opportunity to access high quality undergraduate education, regardless of his or her financial background.

Current Partnership focus

In our first year of partnership, Atma and Avanti will look at researching and instating a fundraising model, which will lead to sustainable funding so that Avanti can create realistic growth plans.

Tools for marketing and communications will increase brand recognition and trust in Avanti’s programs throughout the wider IIT community. Atma has been working with Avanti to develop concrete messaging guidelines that will be used throughout Avanti communications, including their websites, upcoming brochures and other social media channels.

In order to identify the brightest students from low-income backgrounds, Avanti is aiming to expand their selection process to include more schools and more students taking their selection test. Atma volunteers will support this expansion by researching viable channels and potential partnerships with institutions, organisations and networks through which a larger pool of students can be reached. Atma and Avanti are also looking at how better documentation of Avanti Chapter and mentorship activities can be achieved, allowing current chapters to function more efficiently and helping to replicate chapters and programs in new locations. A mentorship manual and a chapter manual will be created to support each chapter and each Avanti Mentor in working consistently, and to their best capacity.

Atma is honoured to be working in partnership with Avanti Fellows: we are looking forward to being a part of their growth over the next three years.

Anna Hankimaa, an HR professional from Finland is finding herself both challenged and satisfied through helping Atma Partner Masoom develop their HR management & processes.

Thorough HR systems for Masoom will create a strong work force with lower staff turn-over, allowing Masoom to maximize their resources and spend more time focusing on programs. Atma has been supporting Masoom on strengthening their HR processes over the past quarter, and brought Anna in at a key time to be able to carry the development of HR documents and programs, and the implementation of new systems. Anna is a training and marketing expert, having taught marketing and worked as a consultant providing trainings. Since Anna began as an Atma Volunteer two months ago, this HR strengthening process has truly taken off. Here is Anna’s report on her experience as an Atma volunteer with Masoom.

“A challenge in the beginning is to try to understand the organisation’s culture and their way of working, thinking and collaborating. For that, you need someone from the organisation who has time to teach you and work with you. I’ve been lucky to have such a person, Lakshmi Jayakar, who knows Masoom in and out. We’ve been working as a team on this project.”

Masoom has been an Atma Partner since April 2010. When Atma volunteers are placed with partners, Atma remains a holistic support to the volunteer, allowing them to concentrate their efforts on their partner progress. The Atma Volunteer orientation ensured that Anna was well equipped to take on the HR requirements for Masoom. In addition to all the necessary information about the Atma Partner to start work there, Anna received constant aid and direction from Atma in her work with Masoom.

“I’ve worked in many organizations in the corporate and education sector, including consultancy which I think has provided me tools to do this. However, this is my very first time working in India, in the NGO sector and as a volunteer in organisations like Atma and Masoom. These factors have provided a great and enjoyable opportunity to learn.

The change that the new HR documents and programs will bring about will be seen in the coming weeks and months as the new handbooks, templates, induction programs and HR processes are being implemented. The implementation is quite concrete as there are a few new employees joining, and the processes, documents and HR responsibilities are now on ‘real life trial’. There’s definitely a learning curve, but so far, it looks good! The long term impact depends very much on consistency in adapting and following the new ways of working. I’ll be overseeing this as much as possible during March & April.

Atma has been consistent and supportive, providing a space for me to share my HR expertise with an Atma Partner who requires it. My experience with the Masoom team has also been very positive. Getting to know them has inspired me in the project since I’m working for them in trying to create structures, processes, templates that make their work more effective.  Knowing the organizational culture gives context, and hopefully has helped me to make solutions fitting to the organization’s reality. I’ve done nothing alone: everything has been through teamwork with Masoom, and especially with Lakshmi. Conversations with Lakshmi have been very fruitful, and crucial to the success of this project. The CEO’s constant feedback has been important in guiding the project. It is in the end her who makes the change happen, or not by believing in the project and requiring the organization to adapt and follow. Thus, I feel the outputs cannot be said to be provided by me although I’ve written them. The input from others has been huge!”

Geoff is a Math and Economics student at Linfield College in Portland, Oregon. In the whole Linfield group of 10 students, Geoff was the only male volunteer. This is his account of his Atma volunteership. Thanks for coming, Geoff!

I was initially attracted towards Atma because of the wide range of NGOs that Atma serves and the enormous list of opportunities to get involved. All of my prior volunteer work had been within my local community: I’d typically worked with younger students on basic skills such reading and writing. I also have experience volunteering in city parks, working on improving the grounds. I was drawn to the Atma volunteership because I prefer volunteering with sustainable projects that can impact a number of people.

My goal with Atma was to help in whatever would be the most beneficial to the specific NGOs, whether it was creating a rooftop garden or painting a kindergarten classroom. I also was hoping to gain insight about the lifestyle and culture in Mumbai, and the current organizations in place working to serve the community.

It’s hard to describe a typical day but our group was usually out the door by 9am every morning to work on a project. We’d have lunch break around noon and then work again until 5ish. While on site, we had ample opportunity to meet people involved with the specific NGO as well as the students we were serving. Anand, the SPROUTS Founder, was very knowledgeable. His enthusiasm and passion for his work made volunteering with the project much more fun and exciting.

One of the most meaningful events for me was during part of our time working with SPROUTS at St. Catherine’s Home. The girls living at the orphanage are so kind and curious, and wanted to spend as much time as they could with us. By the end of our work at the orphanage, we were playing games and communicating with each other despite the language barrier. That was very special for me personally.

I think the most challenging part of the entire experience was having to leave so quickly after forming so many relationships with amazing people.

To be honest, I didn’t know what to expect from the experience. However, everything we participated in exceeded all ideas I had. Each NGO cared so much about their mission that it felt like a privilege to be able to work with such dedicated people. Although many of the projects we assisted with were similar to what I have participated in at home, the experience seemed much more meaningful and affected me in a much more powerful way. To see the hard work and devotion of so many people made the experience exponentially better.

I had so many favourite moments throughout our volunteership, but one of my favourites was seeing the students’ faces light up when they saw the mural we had painted in their classroom. It was a very emotional moment that cannot be articulated in writing.

The entire Atma staff is doing amazing work and if were not for them, our experience would not have been nearly as rewarding. Much of our amazing trip can be attributed to the employees and interns at Atma, and I would like to thank each and every person working there for their enthusiasm and assistance during our time in India.

Would I do this again? In an instant. It has been one of the most life-changing experiences of my life. Even in our short time in Mumbai, I already feel a sense of connection to the people and culture and would seek the opportunity to go back. Working with SPROUTS and CHIP was extremely rewarding. I believe that I took away just as much from the experience as I was able to provide.

Haritha is a 2^nd year Biochemistry student at Linfield College in Portland, Oregon. She recently travelled to Mumbai with eight other classmates and two professors to volunteer with Atma and learn about local social projects. Atma was thrilled to receive the Linfield students, as they were a passionate and enthusiastic group. Haritha’s volunteer report is the first in a series from the Linfield students.

I learned about the Atma Volunteer trip to Mumbai through my college January term class. I’d previously volunteered at the American Red Cross, a hospital and a soup kitchen, but nothing like what we would do in India. I came into the experience knowing that what my classmates and I contributed would be something valuable for local NGOs in the future.

A typical day in Mumbai meant leaving our room at 9AM to head to either SPROUTS, an environmentally-focused organisation, or CHIP, an Atma Graduated Partner and educational NGO. As a team, we’d work on projects throughout the day, usually finishing after 5PM. These projects ranged from helping prepare rough ground to plant a community garden in an orphanage, to painting murals in kindergarten classes. Our experience was facilitated and guided by Atma and leaders from local organisations. In the evening, we were able to taste a little more of Mumbai by heading out to eat or do some shopping.

I really enjoyed working with Atma: I was thankful of how much they helped us get us introduced and integrated into Mumbai and the social sector.

Atma gave us the opportunity to meet incredible leaders. Anand Pendharkar, SPROUTS Founder, was one of the most inspirational person I met, because he is so passionate about his work towards the environment. Listening to Anand talk about the butterfly effect where small changes lead to big changes in the future was a specific conversation that was meaningful to me.

One of my favourite moments of the entire trip took place while working with SPROUTS at St. Catherine’s Home: an orphanage for HIV positive girls. We were so thrilled when the girls came out and started helping us on the vegetable farm. They even introduced us to some of the games they knew, and by the end of our work at SPROUTS, they were calling all the girls “Didi” and all the guys “Uncle.”

Would I do this again?  Yes, because of the amazing relationships you can build with passionate NGO leaders who are doing their part to build a better future for India. Thank you Atma, for the experience!

Atma is excited to announce the arrival of our 2010-2011 Annual Report!

Atma Annual Report 2010-2011

Our Annual Report is a broad overview of Atma’s activities and growth over the past financial year. It includes Atma Partnership updates, reports on Partner beneficiaries, and a special focus on Atma volunteers. Atma’s annual income and expenditure statements are also featured in an effort towards full transparency and disclosure.

Atma is grateful to everyone who made 2010-2011 a fantastic year for Atma and our vision of Quality Education for all children. We look forward to completing another impactful year.

Before getting into the details of my experience with Atma Graduated Partner CHIP, I feel obliged to tell you a little bit about how I caught the bug for philanthropy and volunteer work. It all started in the 12th grade when I went on a school-organized trip with my classmates. There were two components to the trip: a service/school rebuilding component and an adventure/safari component. The latter was the main selling point for me prior to the trip. However, something about spending time with the children at the school ignited a spark in me. This spark was enough for me to convince my friends to head out on a similar, but highly service oriented trip to Cambodia. AfterCambodia, the spark developed into a flame.

Going into college, service became a big part of my life on campus and I was heavily involved in a lot of social justice groups. But this wasn’t enough. I had to step it up a notch, so I decided to major in Social Entrepreneurship to look at possible career paths. It was with this goal in mind that I came to India and accepted an Atma Volunteership.

The first day I walked into the Atma office, I saw three words on a small whiteboard; ‘Sustainability’, ‘Impact,’ and ‘Scale.’ It is then that I knew that I was in the right place. Through Atma Graduated Partner CHIP, I was given the freedom to run and perfect the model of a face-to-face fundraising campaign at Hypercity, one of India’s largest hypermarkets, and was able to attend meetings with some of CHIP’s highest and most important donors. In addition to this, I was entrusted with designing a Diwali Camp program for the children at CHIP schools, developed grant proposals, designed fundraising and marketing media, and assisted in any other school-related activities. This diverse array of responsibilities gave me a holistic view of what it is like to work for and run an educational NGO, which is crucial for an aspiring Social Entrepreneur like myself. My favorite moments were whenever we counted the money raised from the CHIP fundraisers. It all comes back to one of those words on that board: ‘Sustainability.’ Money doesn’t just make the world go round, it makes the NGO sector go round. Sure, you learn about it in textbooks but to experience it first hand is something else. I never expected to be in such an intellectually and professionally stimulating environment, but Atma and CHIP definitely delivered.

The Atma Volunteer experience wasn’t just part-time volunteering: it was a valuable work experience, fostered by an intelligent, experienced, and supportive team of people who have made service their career. To be able to share an office with them and learn from them was all I asked prior to this experience. The way I see it, I got a pretty sweet deal. So would I consider doing this again? Read this article right from the top and you will realize that this question answers itself.

I’d like to thank all of the wonderful people at Atma and the CHIP office. Thanks for accepting me as part of the team. Thanks to Novela Corda, CHIP Executive Director, for giving me the freedom to be myself and do my own thing. Thanks to Summer Starr and Atma, who recruited me and facilitated my volunteership. My experience in Mumbai would be incomplete without all of you.

Dear Atma Family,

As we enter 2012, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on where we have been in the past year and where we are going. We have one very exciting goal for the upcoming year.

2011 has been a milestone year for Atma, celebrating 4 years as an organisation. In 2011, we saw many people join the Atma family who helped to grow our vision and direction. We also saw people leave Atma: most significantly the transition of Lee, our founder. Transitioning the founder of an organisation is no easy task, and something that organisations much older than ours do not dare to take on.

Atma is a 4 year old organisation, and still in many ways a “start-up”. However, we have depth and conviction of a much older organisation.

To me, this conviction comes from a deep belief in our organisation and in our ability to end educational inequality. We are but one part of a bigger movement, but the work we do is integral to bringing quality education to children and young people in India. By building the capacity of NGOs, we are creating sustainable institutions which will be the key to ensuring high quality education to those currently unable to access it.

Atma has the incredible privilege of working with determined and dynamic NGOs from many different fronts in the battle for quality education. The lessons, energy and dedication we draw from them makes us a stronger organisation and better individuals.

Atma was never founded to be a small organisation. With fundraising chapters in 3 countries, Atma has a big mandate. We plan on living up to that mandate in 2012-13. Currently at 6 Atma partners, we have set the BIG goal of reaching 20 partners by March 2013. It will take many people and a lot of hard work to reach this goal, but I know we can do it.

We couldn’t be where we are today without you: your individual support and love has helped us make it this far. I want to take this time to thank you for being part of Atma’s work and for your dedication over the last year.

Atma has big plans for the New Year, and we can’t wait to realize them.

Thank you for your ongoing support. Happy New Year!

With love,

Mary Ellen Matsui

Executive Director, Atma

Amie Peiris, 18, came to Atma from Sri Lanka to do a Human Resource Management internship. Besides her month with Atma being a fantastic professional development opportunity, Amie’s HR work had some concrete impacts at Atma.

This is what Amie wrote about her Atma experience.

I was initially attracted towards Atma because of the work that they do for children and education. Though it was my first volunteering experience, there were many things that I hoped to gain from this internship. Firstly, I wanted to get some first-hand experience into Human Resource Management which is my major. Secondly, I’ll be living in India next year and I wanted to get to know a little more about the country and the educational sector.

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Today, Atma held a farewell lunch for Atma volunteer Jay. Jay came to Atma from Hong Kong and has been volunteering with Atma Graduated Partner CHIP over the past three months. Stay tuned for Jay’s blog post about his Atma experience!

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This commentary on the Right to Education Act was written by Farida Asrani from CHILDReach and Bronwyn McBride from Atma.

The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act came into effect on April 1, 2010. The act serves to ensure that every child has the right and entitlement to a quality elementary education and that the State, with the help of families and communities, fulfills this obligation.

The Right to Education Act is a positive milestone for India: it aims to guarantee access to education for children for low income families and to ensure that every child completes a minimum of 8 years of schooling. However, certain sections of the Act pose challenges for schools offering alternatives to a mainstream education.

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