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"The children thus started attending school during the day, and came to D-20 for home work and other activities like dancing, artwork and singing, in the evenings. The efforts of the teachers whom Prayaas employed were supplemented by student volunteers and volunteers from outside the IIMA community." |
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 In 2008, IIMA Alumnus, highlighted the work of Prayaas-there were 55 students attending Prayaas classes; 26 of them were supported financially by Prayaas (see box below).   Prayaas team and children, October 15, 2011. Source: IIMA Archives  "Despite a rigorous curriculum, students like spending time with the children, teaching them basic concepts in maths and science and in the evening, playing volleyball and other games with them. They may, down the line, become managers and make million-dollar deals, but at Prayaas, they are "Bhaiyyas" and "Didis"- older siblings who teach the children how to count using their fingers and how to write their letters.
Pooja, who is one amongst the first batch of students at Prayaas, continues her tuitions because to her Prayaas is a second home, with her friends, teachers and the IIMA students. Pooja is one of the best dancers and has bagged the first prize in the Janmashtami festival event, Carnival 2012, which was held at TV Towers, Ahmedabad, and was telecast on local channels. Another one of our remarkable children is Gayathri who is continuing her studies and fighting family pressure to quit. She is one of the brightest students at Sahajanand. When Gayathri stood first in the painting competition held at Prayaas, she received her prize at the hands of Honourable Dr A P J Abdul Kalam." Some students share their experiences on the Prayaas website and highlight the role their engagement with Prayaas has played in their development. Over the years, this kind of impact has helped Prayaas grow. The Institute's Fifty-First Annual Report, published in 2012-13, highlights some interesting activities undertaken by Prayaas. "This year, Prayaas provided talented children with a platform to showcase their talents on Independence Day, Navratri, and Holi. But its focus on education continued unhampered as it provided seven children with the opportunity to move from the municipality school to a private school. It also conducted the Joy of Giving week on campus, which provided students and professors alike with an opportunity to give back, in their own special way, to society. The bidding for Shadow-a-CEO was a national level charity event where students bid to donate to spend a day with a CEO of their choice. The main attraction of the week, though, was A Day at IIM-A which enabled people from outside the campus to spend a day at the Institute and experience the life of a first-year student. Participants were encouraged to donate voluntarily with all the collections going to Prayaas. A cloth collection drive was organized to facilitate collection of used and unwanted clothes and distribute them to the needy. Prayaas hired a new teacher for the children and held monthly performance evaluations to ensure that the children performed well. It also ensured they got of nutritious food and attended regular health check-ups. Financial support was provided by the alumni to the tune of Rs.5 lakh". The Fifty-seventh Annual Report, published in 2018-19, highlighted the work of Prayaas in nurturing the lives of 120 underprivileged children. Check out some of the recent and exciting activities organized by Prayaas (sourced from Instagram handle of Prayaas).    Article by Team Archives |
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