Wednesday, October 27, 2010

About vazhai.org

Vazhai was founded by a group of First Generation College Graduates in April 2005 who wanted to pay back to the society in terms of education, mentoring and guidance to children in remotest parts of Tamilnadu. Like a plaintain tree that nurtures its sapling, Vazhai attempts to nurture school children in the remotest parts of Tamil Nadu.With helping hands from all the fields, Vazhai is now entering into its Sixth year with 100 students at Dharmapuri and Villupuram districts of Tamilnadu.
Vision
  • To empower underprivileged rural students with education and values.

Mission
Vazhai strives to cater a helping hand for every deserving child in the following ways,
  • To provide guidance in all ways to the child through a dedicated mentor.
  • To emphasise the importance of education among the rural people.
  • To eradicate gender bias in rural areas and provide equal educational opportunities to female children and make them independent.
  • To convert backward areas into self-sufficient empowered society through educating and mentoring the children.
  • To provide guidance and syllabus to NGOs/other volunteer groups who wish to implement our mentoring model.
The Trust
Vazhai is a registered trust under The Co-operative Societies Act, 1912 with the registration no. 296/05. The office bearers of Vazhai are

  • Jose V Rubhan : Secretary                              
  • Mugundhan : Joint Secretary
  • SatheesKumar & Anbusivam : Treasurers
Our advisory board enrich and guide us in all our activities.The members of the board are :
  • Mr. Gnani – A well known journalist and writer
  • Mr. Mafoi K Pandiarajan – Leading HR Consultant and Philanthropist
  • Mr. Nambi Aarooran - Auditor
  • Ms. Brinda Jayaraman - Child counsellor and Psychologist
  • Mr. Kalyani - Educationist and Human Rights Activist

Uplift poor children - Agaram & Vazhai Foundation welcomes to be a volunteer

This is about a off topic. I am willing to share this.Agaram and Vazhai are working close in the same strap of poor children uplift from the rural area of Tamilnadu.

We are pleased to welcome you to Vazhai and we thank you for your interest on fulfilling your social responsibility. Here in Vazhai we are nurturing the poor students who is going to school first in their generation from the literally backward Dharmapuri district. In the successful commencement of fifth year, we are selecting the 'Mentors' who can guide the child to come up in their life. Let us replicate the help to the next generation which we got from somebody in your generation.
Two major teams are working for Vazhai in Bangalore and Chennai. Now we are looking for mentors in Bangalore region. For becoming a mentor you should be able to spend four weekends(eight days) in an year in Dharmapuri District, speak weekly once through phone with the child(6th Student) you are going to mentor and write letters once in a month to the child. If you are convenient with this and want to start your journey in Vazhai as a Volunteer, we have an 'Introductory meet about Vazhai' followed by a workshop on 'Mentoring' on 6th September Sunday. Your move to attend this meeting is a step to convert your 'thinking of serving' the society into actual execution.
Agaram - Vazhai Foundation

This mentor workshop will give you insights on Vazhai, and the ways you can volunteer in it. Please confirm your presence at the earliest by replying to this mail.

For any clarifications/queries on Vazhai mail to info@vazhai.org. Visit our site www.vazhai.org for more details.

Alpha Foundation joins hand with Agaram Foundation


On the harvest day of Pongal, Alpha Foundation with other 9 members & Agaram join hands to sow the seeds of education. A movement called ‘Vidhai’ is to generate that would pool corpus to help students to achieve their academic goals.

Joining this initiative with their valuable contributions are Erode Sakthi Masala owner Mr. Duraiswamy, Ms. Shanthi Duraiswamy, Mafoi Mr. K.Pandiyarajan, Ms. Latha Pandiyarajan, Tiruchi Alpha Foundation Dr. Pazani, Ramraj Cotton Mr. Nagaraj, Mr. Satuyamurthy, Mr. Varun, Akshaya Homes Mr. Chittibabu, Bharathy Cements together have raised a fund of Rs. 1 crore. This money would be used for theeducation of the needy students who would want to pursue their higher education.

“Agaram acts as bridge to connect the deserving students and those who are willing to provide money for the student’s”, comments Actor Surya, the founder of Agaram.

“Agaram Foundation would choose the deserving students at the end of this academic year and the students would be funded completely for their higher education - be it Engineering or Medicine or any course of the student’s choice from the fund that is collected. Also the chosen students would be constantly monitored on a regular basis and the panel of members who would be choosing these deserving students would be retired Headmaster’s and School Principal’s”, continues Surya.

According to Dr R. Palani, Chairman, Alpha Foundation, the opportunity to introduce SkillSoft's expertise into the organisation's unique online education, training and networking solution was a strategic and fundamental step forward in reducing the extreme skill set shortage in India.

"India's education system is facing serious challenges - poor literacy, lack of education accessibility and technical training. That is why the SkillSoft union with Virtuosity could not come at a better time," he said.



Working towards Building a Skilled India

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Vidhai for quality education | Agaram Learning Centre | Agaram-Vazhikatigal

Activities

Activities

Vidhai (for quality education)

Life is like two sides of a coin, people who are in need of help and people who are able to and willing to offer it. The same can be said about educational assistance. Just as a Blood bank enables the donor to donate blood to save the life of someone in need; Our database aims at introducing our patrons to the worthy and deserving candidate, to whom quality education would grant a fresh lease of life. In this age where quality education comes at a cost that not everyone can afford, there are Samaritans who are willing to offer financial assistance to those in need. Many socially responsible individuals and organizations have approached us in the past, expressing willingness to offer financial assistance for imparting education to the needy. It is hence that we decided to be the bridge between the deprived candidate and quality education which is made possible through a sponsorship from our Patron.

A small deed by someone can create a big difference in another’s life. We work towards identifying and authenticating the deserving candidate and also the cost associated with sponsoring quality education for the candidate. Depending upon the quantum of sponsorship and preferences recorded with us, details of the Sponsorship and Educational Institution for the appropriate Candidate are then made available to the benefactor. Upon confirmation the details of the Sponsorship (Candidate, Benefactor, Educational Institution etc…) are then recorded on the database, post which the Benefactor can then directly provide their contribution to the respective educational institution. On behalf of the benefactor we also maintain the academic records of those students chosen for sponsorship.


Agaram Learning Centre

The Educational Institution plays a very vital role in the quality of education imparted to the students. The basic requirements like amenities and the Faculty have a strong bearing on the Educational Institution. A vast majority of the Educational Institutions in rural Tamilnadu lacks these basic requirements and hence is unable to provide Quality Education. This can be addressed if the student could attend Private tuition to compensate for this lack of infrastructure, which unfortunately is a luxury that most people neither have access to, nor can they afford. This is what Agaram tries to address through our Learning Centers.

At the learning centre we not only try to provide them with better coaching on their curriculum but also emphasize on all round development of the individual through soft skills training and personality development programs. There are 10 such centers in different Districts of Tamilnadu that is run by Agaram today. Each center is resourced with at least One Faculty (Tutor), trained and remunerated by Agaram. Agaram organizes for the Faculty to undergo training to handle multi-level and multi-grade curriculum. The Faculty is aided by Volunteers who are responsible for coordinating all the activities for the center. Averages of 40-50 students from 5th to 8th Std. are chosen to benefit from each centre. The faculty would tutor these students for about 2 ½ hours daily, out of which an hour and a half are dedicated to academics and the remainder of time focuses on soft skills and personality development. Apart from this special workshops are conducted on overall personality of the students.

Special care is taken to identify the special talents and interests of these students. Adequate care is taken in nurturing these skills and talents along with providing plenty of opportunity to exhibit and further hone these skills. The objective of the learning center is to develop Educated, Cultured and Strong Individuals who will have the preparedness and courage to forge a strong and successful future for themselves and for the community from which they come.


Agaram-Vazhikatigal

"Children are one third of our population and all of our future." Are we caring enough for their future?

At Agaram-Vazhikatigal, every member does! Through our mission of mentoring the students and not merely funding their education, we go a step further in bringing out their talent, dream, skill and desire, paving way for every kid to achieve their goal.

Vazhai an NGO who have pioneered in this concept of mentoring, have now prompted Agaram to adopt the same.

Agaram-Vazhikatigal nurtures school children in the remotest parts of Tamil Nadu, India... where parents are daily wage laborer and obviously cannot fend for their little children, and if somehow these parents do manage to send their children to school it is just until they are old enough to become laborers themselves. This is why we came up with a mission to nurture these underprivileged children.

Like all children these kids too have dreams, and we work towards helping them make it a reality. We are attempting to nurture, guide and build a whole new generation of students, so that they, in turn, do the same for the generation that follows.

These children need mentors... and one of them could be a motivated person like you. Mentoring here in Agaram means more than just education... As a mentor you can open a whole new world for them... inspire them...

Mentors are registered volunteer members of Agaram foundation professionals who can spare their time and some money to take care of one child’s education and, more importantly, help realize the child’s true potential by providing vital guidance and support through the years. In this program a mentor interacts with the student regularly, teaches them the basics of general awareness about the society, personal hygiene, inter-personal communication, educates them as well as guide them through their turbulent lives.

Students are also encouraged to write letters and postcards to their mentors. This not only provides a means for regular update, but also gives the mentor an opportunity to tone up the communication skills and overall development of the child. A mentor meets or speaks to his/her ward frequently, gets to visit them once in two months and this regular contact is priceless for the Child. This in turn helps the child to be more confident and they feel at ease when they meet their mentor the next time.

Knowledge they say increases by sharing, this is why we aim at bringing mentors like you closer to these students so that at the end both the receiver and the giver benefit.. While you try to teach our children all about life, our children will teach you what life is all about. All that these children ask from you is your support and a little time and we are sure that you will gain more than what you give. At the end of the day you'll be glad for investing your energy because you would know that somewhere far away a child is motivated and inspired... all because of you.

If you wish to enable these tasks, become a volunteer at AGARAM and make a child’s dream come true!!!

Agaram Foundation Trust



The Trust

The Foundation of Agaram

Taking our mission forward is our Trust, backed by accomplished individuals from all walks of life.

Trustees

* T.J.Gnanavel, (Secretary Trustee)
* Mr.S.R. Prakash Babu, (Treasurer)

Advisors

  • Dr. V. Vasanthi Devi,

Former Vice-Chancellor, Manonmaniam University & Chairperson, Tamilnadu State, Women’s Commission, Chennai Chairperson of the Institute of Human Rights Education and former Chairperson of the State Commission for Women. "Though this is a step forward, the government needs to look into larger issues that ails the system."– Dr Vasanthi Devi

  •  Mr. Ravikumar, MLA
An MLA who is also a famous writer, columnist and compiler of more than ten books and the editor of Quarterly Magazines 'Dalit' and 'Bodhi'. Ravikumar (1960) is the Kattumannarkovil MLA from the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal (Liberation Panthers) party. He is the foremost activist-theoretician of the Dalit movement. As a human rights activist, he has earlier served as the State President of the People's Union for Civil Liberties in both Tamilnadu and Pondicherry. He co-founded Navayana, India's first publishing house to exclusively address the issue of caste. He edits the Tamil quarterly literary journal Dalit. He has published several collections of essays including Kothippu Uyarnthu Varum. Renowned for his essays, we have included his poems in this volume, mainly for their sharpness of insight and the sheer power of expression.

  •  Ms. Kanimozhi M.P
A poet, a former journalist and a member of Raja sabha, she was also working with an English newspaper as a sub-editor. She went on to maintain a modest profile by confining herself to literary activities.

  • Mr. K. Pandia Rajan
Founder and CEO of Ma Foi Management Consultants Ltd., Founder, and a guide to many non-governmental organizations working in the fields of human resources development and grassroots economic development. He is also the Founder-Trustee of Confederation of Indian Organizations for Service and Advocacy (CIOSA), a forum representing over 132 NGOs in Chennai.

  • Mrs. Brinda Jayaraman
Psychological consultant specialized in mental health, serves the depressed through her organization Anchor Self Help Access (ASHA). She serves as Consultant to many schools and conducts workshops on Parenting Skills, Counseling skills, Interpersonal Skills and Study Skills among other areas. She is also a prolific writer and well-known TV commentator.

Agaram foundation Learning Centre Educational Institution Plays a very Vital role in the Quality of Education Imparted to the Students

Learning Center 

Learning Center

The Educational Institution plays a very vital role in the quality of education imparted to the students. The basic requirements like amenities and the Faculty have a strong bearing on the Educational Institution. A vast majority of the Educational Institutions in rural Tamilnadu lacks these basic requirements and hence is unable to provide Quality Education. This can be addressed if the student could attend private coaching to compensate for this lack of infrastructure, which unfortunately is a luxury that most people neither have access to, nor can they afford. This is what Agaram tries to address through our Learning Centers.

At the learning centre we not only try to provide them with better coaching on their curriculum but also emphasize on all round development of the individual through soft skills training and personality development programs. There are 10 such centers in different Districts of Tamilnadu that is run by Agaram today. The infrastructure of all centers is provided by Agaram and each center is resourced with at least One Faculty (Tutor), trained and remunerated by Agaram. Agaram organizes for the Faculty to undergo training to handle multi-level and multi-grade curriculum. The Faculty is aided by Volunteers who are equally trained as the tutors and are responsible for coordinating all the activities for the center. Averages of 40-50 students from 5th to 8th Std. are chosen to benefit from each centre. The faculty would tutor these students for about 2 ½ hours daily, out of which an hour and a half are dedicated to academics and the remainder of time focuses on soft skills and personality development. Apart from this special workshops are conducted on overall personality of the students.  

Special care is taken to identify the special talents and interests of these students. Adequate care is taken in nurturing these skills and talents along with providing plenty of opportunity to exhibit and further hone these skills. The objective of the learning center is to develop Educated, Cultured and Strong Individuals who will have the preparedness and courage to forge a strong and successful future for themselves and for the community from which they come.

Vidhai For Quality Education

Me Too

We are pleased to welcome you to support the deserving students to pursue quality education.

Please fill the form below and we will get in touch with you soon.

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