Employability skills for underserved youth

Newsletter Volume 5

February’2013

Candle light signifies the power of one. It burns

with a spirit of truth fearlessly illuminating the

darkness that surrounds. Connecting humans to

the Divine within, a candle flame stands for

humility, sacrifice and purification.

2

The 3 Cs’ Approach Towards Sustainability:

Compassion, Courage and Change

The best help that benevolence and philanthropy can

give is that which induces everybody to help himself. -

Calvin Coolidge

As agents of change, this is especially relevant for

NGOs because of the increasing emphasis on financial

sustainance. We at NIIT Foundation (NF) have been

focused on sustainability from the start. In some cases,

we have been able to strike the balance, in others we

have had to shut slum centers down because we just

ran out of funds.

Traditionally, NGOs depend on sources such as

corporates, government, and individuals for funding.

But sooner or later these sources run dry or priorities

change for the funder. One wonders who is affected

the most? Not the NGOs, because they will find other

sources or will align their offering/focus to what the

funder wants. Not the funders because they will find

other CSR areas of interest and continue to make an

impact.

It is the beneficiaries who suffer the most– they no

longer get the support that they were getting because

now someone’s interest is different. NF still gets calls

from the youth asking why we closed the center in their

area. Secondly, there is a loss of ‘trust’ among the

beneficiaries who now become vary of anyone who

wants to help – a challenge for any new entrant

philanthropic/social initiative in their area.

Funds, being the lifeblood for any function, are indeed

the decisive factor for sustained initiatives. We believe

therefore that the source of funds should be direct

beneficiaries – in our case the students. Apart from the

obvious result of sustenance – partial if not total – there

are many other benefits:

EDITORIAL If students pay, they will not settle for sub-

standard offering. The classes better happen

on time, quality of training better be good. This

keeps us on our toes, ensures better quality

impact

Our goal for our students is to help them

develop self-esteem and confidence – key

challenges in their upbringing. You can’t really

build self-esteem in someone when they are

living on charity. We want them to feel they are

capable of paying – of course amounts can vary

Most of our students believe exploitation is an

acceptable way of life. They are exploited for

bribe, votes, or any other way they can be. In

return, they have learnt that it is ok to steal

electricity or cable if they need it. We want the

students to learn that they must pay for the

services they use. That it is not OK to exploit or

be exploited

The challenge is to make people appreciate this belief –

be it corporates when we tell them that we want the

students to pay some fees even if it goes against their

CSR policy or other NGOs who we consult with and

encourage to charge fees from the students.

We appreciate that some beneficiaries might be able to

pay a bigger portion of the cost while others only a

token amount - however, each will have a stake in their

own development. As change agents we should be the

first ones to move to a more effective approach of

compassion rather than a simple charitable one. This

New Year let us review our methods and make the

changes necessary, even if they are not the trend.

Happy New Year!

Best Wishes

Sapna Moudgil

3

FOCUS : 5 Years of Chhindwara DLC First NIIT Foundation District Learning Centre

(DLC) was set up in Chhindwara, MP, in 2007,

when Hon. Minister Mr. Kamal Nath invited

NIIT to take the onus of training the local

Chhindwara youth in IT skills and build in the

necessary soft skills so they could succeed in

work life. Since then the initiative has taken

off and a second DLC was started in Barkuhi

in 2009.

On 9th of January’2013, Chhindwara DLC

celebrated its 5 year anniversary. The

occasion was graced by Honorable Finance

Minister Mr. P. Chidambaram, Honorable Minister Mr. Kamalnath, Chairman of NIIT Mr. Rajendra S Pawar,

respected MLA Mr. Deepak Saxena and many other distinguished guests.

NIIT Foundation District Learning Centers

(DLC) in Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh was

started on the hypothesis that it is possible to

bring a rural or semi-rural graduate to the

same level of proficiency as the urban student

by providing focused and high-quality

training.

“I will congratulate Kamalnath,

his foresightedness in bringing

NIIT Foundation to Chhindwara

and now this model should be

replicated many many times in

many parts of India”

Finance Minister,

Mr. P. Chidambaram

“It was because these students used to

lose out in the last lap, I requested

Rajendra Pawar to train these students

on the last lap, so that students could

become capable and get jobs.”

Minister of Urban Development ,

Mr. Kamal Nath

“Cycle has now been completed. We found a

good model which is sustainable, which is

workable, which is more and more dependent

on the local situations. Starting with IT, we are

launching the second area and the goal is to

add on a number of areas.”

Mr. Rajendra Pawar

Chairman, NIIT

4

STUDENT SPEAK

Deepak had been a seasonal laborer at a liquor factory since

the age of 13 years. “No matter how hard you work, you remain

a laborer. Sometimes broken bottles cut your hands in the rush

of packing. Often my wages went in nursing my hands instead

of my school fees”. Enrolling for a graduation degree and being

accepted on a scholarship for an NIIT Foundation (NF) course

at Jindal Institute of Information Technology, Hisar were high

points of Deepak’s life. When severe financial crisis struck with

his mother’s diagnosis of tuberculosis, giving up education to

be full time laborer looked like the only alternative. “There was

no food to eat, where would I get the money for fees?” Deepak,

22 years, soon realized, he did have a choice, “I had learnt basic

computer at NIIT (Foundation) Center by then, and got a data

entry job that paid better than the factory.”

Instead of dropping out of one year NF course, Deepak now

paid close attention to what he was learning and how he could

apply it to his job. 2 months later after learning customer

service, he took up a better paid job as a marketing executive

with Tata Docomo. With the support of NF trainers, Deepak’s

stammering diminished, he learnt essentials of dressing,

customer service and a lot more; he shares, “The other boys

dress up in jeans, they do not understand their customers. They

never meet the targets. I meet my targets, and in 6 months of

job, my seniors have started respecting me for this, they first

serve me tea, and then talk about numbers. If NIIT (Foundation)

center had not opened here, my personality would not have

opened up either”, shares Deepak.

Though his NF assisted placement is still 2 months away,

Deepak already has a job offer from Vishal Mega Mart, where

during a recent internship he impressed the management with

his sincerity. His parents’ worries about his future have

vanished, “My father who rarely gets a day off from work,

rejoices at my weekly offs and reminds me often that I already

earn nearly as much as he does.” He gifted a self-composed

poem to thank his trainer at NIIT Foundation. Here are a few

lines:

Agar Sapno Ko Jeena Hai, Agar Kuchh Kar Badalna Hai, Toh Yeh

Sab Jan Ka Haq Hai

Magar Sapno Ko Wahi Jiyega Jo Museebat Ko Gale Lagayega,

Mehnat Se Hee Toh Har Insaan Badaa Banta Hai.

Deepak Suraliya: Writing Destiny

Name Deepak Suraliya

Center Hisar

Course Retail

From above:

Top: Deepak standing outside his home.

Middle: Deepak studying at the center.

Bottom: Deepak on the job, talking to customers.

JIIT Hisar Center has been

set up by JSL Foundation in

partnership with

NIIT Foundation for the

employability training of

marginalized youth.

5

EVENTS

Madanpur Khadar Center received donation of computers and data cards from Tata Teleservices

Industrial visit to Net Ambit office premises was organized by Nizamuddin CDC

Bata Visit to Mangolpuri Center was organized in December’12

Apna Basti Mela organized between 29th Nov to 1st December in Nizamuddin Basti for introducing the marginalized youth to the skill development courses at NF many students have already taken admission and others will take admission after the examination.

NIIT Foundation DLC Chhindwara was awarded the Shiksha Ratna Award in the category of Best Higher Education Institute of Madhya Pradesh at the Digital Learning State Education Summit 2012, held on 19th of December’2012

7 NF Student received offer letters from Tata Consultancy Services

6

SPECIAL MENTION Mobile Learning in Class

From the inception of NIIT Foundation, it has been felt that typical training

time of 4-6 months needs to be further reduced. The idea came from the

students; most of them display an urgency to start working and supporting

their families financially. Another challenge arises in case of girls who are

debarred by their families to attend regular training due to household

chores or economic problems.

To find an effective solution to the above concerns, NIIT Foundation (NF)

has been working with Nokia on a research pilot that explores

the use of mobile applications for employability training.

Applications include Nokia Data Gathering, Nokia Education

Delivery and Nokia (English) Life Tool for improving both the

training delivery of trainers and learning ability of youth.

Aspects that motivated us:

Mobile applications provide 24*7 access to youth who otherwise do not

have such learning environment

Girls have the flexibility to access this content using their personal

phones, in their free time

Allows students who are low on confidence to learn at their own pace

“During the session, the students

who usually kept quiet, barely

could utter a word in English, were

trying to speak about the content

shared in the video. It has helped

to reduce steps of answer sheet

correction, entering marks in excel,

preparing and keeping all records,

where possibility of answer /

survey sheets getting misplaced

could not be ruled out. The very

fact that taking test through NDG

eliminated scope for cheating by

students gives a sense of relief to

the trainer”.

Preeti Binnani, Centre Head,

Brahmpuri Center

Mobile learning being displayed for the

students

Muskaan, 18 Years, is pursuing a course in Accountancy from

NF along with her B.Com 1st year through correspondence

from Delhi University. Easy access to content in her personal

phone has helped in higher retention. Since the revision

exercises can be sent to personal phones, she could continue

to be in touch with her English practice when she was on a

study leave from the center.

Deepak, 18 Years, also pursuing Accounting from NF and

B.Com 1st year through correspondence from Delhi University,

is keen to share the content in his phone and his learning with

his neighbor’s children who can’t afford to go to school.

Students concentrating during Mobile

Learning Sessions

Mobile Learning Sessions Ratings by Students at NF Centers

Nokia 701

7

NIIT Foundation (NF) is a not-for-profit

education society that makes critical

interventions towards upgrading the skill

base and employability of the

marginalized youth in urban slums and

rural areas.

We are actively seeking partnerships

with like-minded corporates aligning

their CSR goals to our organizational

mission.

Our existing corporate partnership

centers are located in Nizamuddin

(Delhi), Noida (Uttar Pradesh), Dasna

(Uttar Pradesh), Jajpur (Odisha), Mumbai

(Maharashtra), and Hisar (Haryana).

PROJECT UPDATES

Performance Areas’2008-12 Total

No. of Students Impacted 66060

Percentage of girl students 43%

Percentage of placed students 74%

No. of NGO partners 85

No. of partner employers 250

Volunteer hours 12206

No. of centers 19

“My experience with NF has been

a roller coaster ride. Every

situation has taught me

something new. As an individual,

I have seen my learning graph

growing in a positive direction. I

can’t define in words, the amount

of satisfaction that I get when

students get placed. It feels

special when students look up to

you for advice, they try to copy your dressing style, they

try to copy your accent and they try to become YOU. It

is the most amazing feeling when your student

becomes your colleague.”

Aditi Massey, Centre Coordinator, NF

“I joined NF with a dream to change the world in my own way. I wanted to interact with today’s

marginalized youth and share their view of the world. The challenge is to make them see things in

a different way...that the world is much more than what they have experienced & seen. I learned

along the way to be a good & patient listener. I have become much more conscious of what I say

& do. Another thing I have learned is, that today’s youth want to respect others. It’s just that they

want the people to earn it rather than demand it. The changes I have seen in the students is that

they have started to look at things from a different perspective and they have started to become a

bit more thoughtful about their future. It feels good that I have played some role in that change.”

Shikhar Prateek, Soft Skills Trainer, NF

Our trainers shape the youth for future. They create the NIIT Foundation impact. Be it rural or urban slums areas, like master craftsmen, they transform lives of marginalized youth into success stories every day. You can join our heroes by sponsoring the communities they hold responsibility for. You can start with sharing this newsletter with all your friends, as any new connection may have the possibility of bringing hope for an at-risk youth. You could also visit our centers and capture stories of personal victories accomplished, through words, photography or videography on NF initiatives, or spread the word through your media connections.

8

CENTERS

Noida-51: Lavkush Market, near Post Office, main road Hoshiyarpur, Sector 51, Noida -201301, Tel: 9953615123; Begumpur :

Basti Vikas Kendra, Behind Begumpur Bus-stop, Malviya Nagar, Begumpur -110017, Ph. 40580305; Paharganj: 9329/1, Gali No.7,

Multani Dhandha, Paharganj- 110055, Ph. 47506874, 47506873; Prem Nagar : I-180, Prem Nagar II, 70Ft Road, Kirari, New Delhi

-110086, Ph. 25185560; Gurgaon : Vishwas Vidyalaya, Sector 46, near Unitech Cyber Park, Gurgaon -122001, Ph. 7838177728;

Mangolpuri: L-625, DDA Flats, (near Mother Dairy) Mangolpuri, Delhi Ph. 011-27918987; Sunder Nagri: N-25/26, Sunder Nagri,

New Delhi -110093, Ph. 22597745; Madanpur Khadar: H.No 317, Chauhan Mohalla, Manshukh Singh Marg, Near, Anglo Indian

Public School, Madanpur Khadar, New Delhi – 76, Ph: 29947891; Civil Lines: No. 2 Raj Niwas Marg, near Shah Auditorium, Civil

Lines, New Delhi, Ph: 23982620; Ghaziabad: Gram Niyojan Kendra, Adhyatmik Nagar, Opp. IMS Engg. College. Dasna, Ghaziabad,

Ph: 7838177728 Nizamuddin: MCP School, Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti, Delhi -110013. Ph: 9818942279; Gharoli: C-548, Harijan

Basti, Gharoli Extension -110096, Ph. 22628857; Brahmpuri : C-185/36, 1st Floor, Above MTS Office, Main Brahmpuri Road Delhi -

110053, Ph. 22560344; Shastri Nagar: DD-82, Vishvakarma Colony, Nahari ka Naka, Shastri Nagar, Jaipur, Ph: 0141-2309699;

Jajpur: JSL Institute of Industrial Training, Trijanga rehabilitation colony, P.O. Danagadi Jajpur 755026, Ph: 07735565556;

Mumbai:FSC-1,1st floor shopping complex, opposite Airport high school, New Airport Colony, (opposite Hanuman road) Airport

Authority of India, Vila Parle East Mumbai- 400099, Ph: 09619619074; Hisar: JINDAL INSTITUTE OF INDUSTRIAL TRAINING,

(Formerly Stainless Skill Training Institute - Prerana), 126 Green Square Market, Hisar - 125 005, Ph: 07206790140; Chhindwara

DLC: NIIT District Learning Center, near FCI warehouse Seoni road, Chhindwara Madhya Pradesh- 480002, Ph: 0716 2232228,

0716 2232229; Barkuhi DLC: Barkuhi old VTC building, near SBI Barkuhi, Madhya Pradesh- 480447, Ph: 0716 1263334

Project Director

NIIT Foundation

A-24, Sector –34, Infocity,

Gurgaon,

Haryana-122001,

India

Website: www.niitfoundation.org

Email: niitaffirmativeaction@niit.com,

Giving@niit.com,

Partner@niitfoundation.org

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/

NIITAffirmativeAction

Office: +91-124-491-6500/ 01/ 02,

FAX: +91-124 -491-5178

This is how you can help...