Dear friends,

The Fall 2009 semester is well underway and it’s time to share what we’ve been doing. Read about the great events we’ve had in New York City, where we’ve appeared in the news, and of course how the school year is going.

In this newsletter:

Support the school by donating to Dollars for Scholars

Sponsoring a child for a year is one of the greatest gifts you can give the children of Shanti Bhavan, but it isn’t the only way you can help out. Just a dollar a day will go a long way.

For most of us, a dollar is nothing extraordinary. It might get you half your morning coffee or half your morning subway ride. But at Shanti Bhavan a Dollar a Day gets you much more than half of something ordinary. A dollar educates, feeds, houses, clothes and provides medical care for our Shanti Bhavan Scholars, and we think that’s pretty extraordinary!

Our Dollars for Scholars drive is recruiting a 1000 supporters to donate a Dollar a Day for a year. If we can meet this goal, it will be possible for us to enroll a brand new class of bright-eyed, vivacious pre-schoolers. We commit to educating, housing and caring for these little Scholars for 13 years, all the way through graduation.

Signing up is easy. Simply visit our online donation page, select a recurring monthly donation and set it for $31.00. You’ll be automatically debited each month. It’s as simple as that! You might not notice that dollar each day, but the kids at Shanti Bhavan certainly will.

Volunteers Needed

Our volunteers are an integral part of Shanti Bhavan. They bring a host of skills and experiences to the institution and play an important role as teachers, mentors and role-models to our children. While volunteers of all backgrounds and expertise are instrumental, we are especially looking for the following:

• Teachers/educators with a specialization in primary and middle-school education.
• Volunteers who can teach high-school level English, Math, and the Sciences.
• Volunteers who can teach high-school level Computer Science, and Business classes (Economics, Accounting, etc).

If you can’t make it to India, we can use your help in the U.S. with event-planning, fundraising and public awareness. Don’t be shy—join the team!

What’s Happening at the School

The children returned from their 5 week summer break full of excitement, eager to see their friends and start the new year. Our 15 oldest students, now in 12th grade, are preparing hard for the upcoming Indian School Certificate (ISC) examination which will mark their graduation from Shanti Bhavan. Two years ago the entire class made history by passing the ICSE exam with First Division marks. With our first graduation approaching, all of our students, teachers, staff and volunteers are working around the clock to make sure our oldest class is fully prepared to tackle their exams and are ready for the transition out of Shanti Bhavan.

Following in their footsteps, our new class of 11th graders also set a milestone for the school by passing their ICSE exams with First Division marks in May. This astounding achievement, two years in a row, is a testament to the limitless abilities of these children who are striving to break the chains of poverty they were born into through their education and experiences at Shanti Bhavan.

The month of June at Shanti Bhavan was filled with several new faces and the return of many familiar ones. We welcomed new teachers in the subjects of chemistry, physics, computer applications, English, social studies, and math. The new term also brought in old and new volunteers from the fields of finance, journalism, architecture, music, drama, dance, and medicine. Both the new teachers and volunteers bring with them a wealth of different experiences and a fresh view on how to continually make improvements at Shanti Bhavan. A group of them have been working to revamp the sports program for the 6th through 12th grades to promote healthy competition and build team spirit, with the ultimate goal of competing in sporting events with other schools. The students are now organized into 4 different house teams that play against each other regularly. The younger students have a chance to learn from their older teammates, who in turn have a chance to take leadership roles for their team.

Several visitors came to Shanti Bhavan during the beginning of the new school year. Among them were a group from Microsoft R&D, a veterinarian, a former Indian Institute of Science professor, and a group of business leaders from Bahrain. Each visit exposed the children to different fields and cultures. A team of dedicated, young engineers came on back to back Sundays to coach students for the IIT joint entrance exam and provide career counseling for the 12th grade. The kids are off to a great start for a wonderful new school year.

Shanti Bhavan in the News

Volunteer Dr. Dagmar Etkin Featured in New York Times Travel Piece

Dr. Dagmar Etkin, a regular volunteer at Shanti Bhavan and continued supporter, was featured in the New York Times piece “Why We Travel?” for a photograph taken of her by Amiran White, a photojournalist who was featured in our last newsletter. Dr. Etkin is an environmental consultant who taught the sciences to the children, along with her son Derek. “I had asked Mrs. Law whether I could visit some of the local rural villages to see how the people lived there. I had already seen some of the slum areas in Bangalore and Mysore, and I wanted to see what it was like in the rural areas. Mrs. Law arranged for me to go to the Oddapalli and Deeverapalli with Grace Thomas, the social worker at the Baldev Medical Clinic,” Dr. Etkin tells us. “Amiran White, the photographer who was doing a photo-essay on Shanti Bhavan, was there with me. She took my picture.”

“I wanted very much to be able to put into context where our Shanti Bhavan children come from. The people in the village were very friendly and welcoming despite their impoverished circumstances. I was able to communicate with them through the interpreter. They spoke Telugu. They were very proud to show me the new roof on one of the huts and the new community bathing area. The older women showed me the way they were drying mustard seeds to make mustard oil. I was really honored to spend time with them.” You can find the article on the New York Times website.

Outlook Business Magazine Provides In-Depth Look

India’s Outlook Business magazine featured an in-depth article on Shanti Bhavan in its June 27, 2009, edition. The piece is a comprehensive look at the story behind the school, our philosophy of providing the children the best opportunity possible to succeed, and a profile of some of our children. Most importantly, the article emphasizes some of the financial difficulties we are facing given the current economic conditions. We extend our warmest gratitude to writer Sriram Srinivasan for his wonderful work. You can read the full story on the Outlook Business website.

Wall Street Journal Republishes Wharton Housing Report

The Wall Street Journal republished a Wharton article written by Shanti Bhavan founder Dr. Abraham George on the issue of housing and sustainable communities from August 2007. During the past 14 years, Dr. George has visited a number of villages in the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to meet with the families of our Shanti Bhavan children. In his social work, he covered a population of 16,000 people in the 17 villages surrounding Shanti Bhavan. The report is a powerful view into the living conditions of the poor and the hardships faced by them that provides a deeper perspective into the sort of social injustices we are fighting against. You can read the July article on the WSJ website.

Events in the United States

Shanti Bhavan Organizes Mixer at Leela Lounge in May

In order to raise money to sponsor a child for one year and celebrate the graduation of three of our U.S. volunteers, Leela Lounge in Downtown Manhattan was host to a fantastic gathering of friends on May 21st. Over 100 people came out to enjoy festivities, while learning about our work at Shanti Bhavan. Our goal was to raise $1,500 – one year of tuition – for Shree Shakthi, one of our adorable 3rd graders, as well as celebrate the graduations of Vivian Cabral, Vidula Pant, and Dimitri Zakharov. Dimitri completed his NYU Stern undergraduate degree while Vivian and Vidula both completed their masters programs at Columbia and NYU Stern, respectively. By the end of the night, we raised over $2,200 dollars, surpassing our expectations!

Over the course of three hours we made many new friends who we hope will continue to support the children. During the event, founder Dr. Abraham George gave a fascinating speech about his motivation for starting Shanti Bhavan. Also, former volunteer Michelle Miller spoke about her experience teaching at the school as a member of Artists Striving To End Poverty (ASTEP), one of our partner organizations. ASTEP has been one of our strongest supporters by continuing to send artists to India and spearheading a number of fundraising efforts on behalf of the school. Through their work, the children at Shanti Bhavan are regularly exposed to the beauty and creativity of art from top rate performers.

The event also featured a raffle contest, including gift certificates to Abercrombie & Fitch and Godiva, a wallet and handbag. Atif Ateeq was kind enough to take photographs throughout the night, which can be view on his online gallery. We want to extend a very warm thank you to him as well as the management at Leela Lounge for allowing us to use their space for the event. We hope to have another event like this in the near future.

Shanti Bhavan Recognized by US India Business Council

Shanti Bhavan was given the unique honor of being one of three non-profit organizations – and the only educational initiative – to be recognized by the United States India Business Council (USIBC) at their Annual Synergies Summit on June 16th and 17th. The USIBC, an advocacy organization comprised of American and Indian top tier companies, identified poverty in India as an issue demanding the attention of the US-Indian business community and USIBC members.

“The education of children, particularly girls, is close to my heart,” said Indra K. Nooyi, CEO of PepsiCo, Chairwoman of USIBC, and native of South India, in her keynote address. She spoke about the seminal role education plays in poverty alleviation and the need to invest in a work force empowered to advance India’s future economic growth. USIBC honored several Indian Business leaders, and elected to make donations in their names to charitable organizations making an impact on poverty in India. A donation in honor of Anil Ambani, Chairman and CEO of Reliance was made to Shanti Bhavan.

The event was attended by a number of luminaries, including US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, US Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, Indian Ambassador to the United States Meera Shankar and newly appointed Indian Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma. Special thanks to Dagmar Etkin and Richard Fredericks for their support and for facilitating this wonderful opportunity for Shanti Bhavan.

Former Volunteers Host Benefit Show to Raise Money

On Monday July 6th, former volunteer Elizabeth Daniels organized a benefit concert to raise money for one of our 5th grade students, Yeshwini. The concert, held at the Metropolitan Room in Midtown Manhattan, featured an incredible repertoire of singers (including two-time volunteer Michelle Miller) performing both original songs as well as notable Broadway numbers. Each of the dozen artists shared their warmest appreciation for the work being done at Shanti Bhavan and sang magnificent songs. Elizabeth shared cards made for her by the children and told heartfelt stories of her time at Shanti Bhavan. She closed off the night with a performance of “For Good” from the musical Wicked, a favorite among her 5th grade students, who left a “handprint on her heart.”

Both Elizabeth and Michelle arrived at Shanti Bhavan through our partner organization Artists Striving To End Poverty (ASTEP). We want to thank the Metropolitan Room for donating the space and cover charge and extend a special thanks to Amy Wolk for emceeing and performing, Joe Kinosian as accompanist and musical director, as well as John Flynn, Katherine Malak, Neely Bridges, Andy Jobe, James LaRosa, Eric Neher, Nikki M. James, Corey Moran and Pauline Pisano for sharing their talent and compassion to make it an unforgettable evening. Their collaboration demonstrates how anyone can lend a hand to our cause in creative ways.

Our Shanti Bhavan Family Grows Even Larger

Two of our dedicated volunteers, Becca Bailey and Derek Etkin, have announced they are getting married. Even more exciting, they are expecting a baby due early this winter! Both Becca and Derek have been long term volunteers for Shanti Bhavan, and they taught together last fall. They are also heavily involved with helping our operations here in the United States from their home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Derek is the son of Dr. Dagmar Etkin, who is featured in the New York Times article in this newsletter. She tells us that she is very excited to become a grandmother, although her excitement may be trumped by the excitement of the children at Shanti Bhavan. We are very happy about the news and we wish them all the best!

Volunteer Profile – Vivian Cabral

How did you get involved?
I found SB through word-of-mouth. I needed a client for my master’s thesis project and through my friend Colleen I got connected to Shanti Bhavan .

When did you start working?
I started talking with the SB team in May 2008, but I didn’t really start working until November 2008.

Tell me about this thesis.
The thesis is an advanced communications project for my Master’s in Strategic Communications at Columbia University. The objective is to work with a client to help them solve a problem using communications. In this case, my project focused on how to find SB a new donor base and how to reach out to them.

What did you do for the thesis?
I reached out to different audiences to see what would be the best way to bring in donations. Would it be to reach out to the press? Find out if the non-resident India audience was the best target? I interviewed different journalists, PR workers, NRIs, and other potential donor audiences. I found that the volunteers were the best audience to help build the communication strategy as they make ideal brand ambassadors.

What change do you see happening at Shanti Bhavan?
The most significant change at SB has been going from a sole funder, Dr. George and his family, to moving to a mixed model by drawing in more financial sources. You have to create some secession planning and you don’t want to depend on just one source. You have to really find people who believe in SB and the mission and also have the capacity to give. I think volunteers are ideal in promoting the mission of SB in the US. They are powerful influencers – they believe that education is powerful tool in alleviating poverty and each has their own unique experience teaching in India. Their connection to the SB children is quite compelling and they see first hand how SB changes the lives of SB families, but also how SB changes a volunteer’s life.

What opportunities do you see for Shanti Bhavan in the US?
There are a lot of fundraising opportunities using social media and using grassroots efforts. I think we already have over 1,000 followers on Twitter and almost 500 friends on Facebook. Both of those can be powerful word-of-mouth tools in relaying our message and keeping our friends and volunteers informed on events and how to help. Several volunteers around the country have successfully raised thousands of dollars to keep SB up and running. If we could get more volunteers involved in fundraising, I think it could alleviate the financial burden that the school is currently experiencing and allow the school to operate at maximum capacity.

We recently had an event at Leela Lounge in May. Do you think these events are helpful?
I think events are nice natural way for people to get introduced to the school. It’s also a good way for volunteers to network and pass around ideas and share their experience. I think that the pictures we showed and meeting other graduates turned out to be very successful. One person said to me, “I had no idea that this was the school you were talking about.” Another friend used the event for networking. He was talking to a gentleman at the event and almost got a job!

I think it’s also a great way to spread the word and for local business to see that we have this great following. It’s proving to them that we’re a worthy cause. People see the numbers that show up at this event and they get it. What’s really interesting is that most of it has been word of mouth. Best of all, volunteers can really have these events anywhere too.

What are the biggest challenges in this transition?
I think the major challenge in terms of moving to the mixed source is proving the school’s impact. The school is relatively small, and corporations and donors want to see how far their dollars can go. It needs to be brought to them through a personal contact. It’s a challenge since the school is still in its infancy so it’s difficult to empirically demonstrate it, but the volunteers are the ones who really understand and can show it the best. We have to really demonstrate the return on investment.

We have to be upfront in making people understand that we need money. We’re not able to enroll a new class this year and teachers are taking a pay cut. The school needs resources in order to continue to make progress. The other question is, how will Shanti Bhavan help support the children when they leave for college? The school is their source of support, and we need to find the resources and talent to help these kids adjust to life after SB.

What are you doing now with Shanti Bhavan?
I’m continuing to help with their communication strategy and their fundraising efforts. I will be going to Shanti Bhavan in September to volunteer.

Why do you want to go to India?
Going to Shanti Bhavan was always a possibility from the onset of talking with the SB team. I got really excited after talking and interviewing so many of the volunteers. After speaking with them, I was blown away by how highly the volunteers spoke of SB. I became more curious why people were so attracted to the organization, and people seemed really passionate about the children and the mission. There are thousands of opportunities to volunteer, especially in India, but I found this one had the best focus on educating a few children, doing it really well, and not just giving a hand out. It really is shaping their lives, giving them a safe childhood, and making their dreams a possibility.

You think you’re prepared volunteer for that long?
I know there will be challenges. I’m not a vegetarian and I haven’t had a roommate for years, so this will definitely be challenging. There will be cultural barriers and etiquette I have to learn. I do feel better prepared because I have interviewed 20+ volunteers and developed a relationship with the SB team. I look forward to the challenges in India and can’t wait to meet my new students!

How can people who can’t go to India help with Shanti Bhavan?
I think there are plenty of opportunities to help the school outside of India. Everyone can help fundraise or spreading the word. If you look at my case, there are alternative opportunities to help out. I used it for my graduate school thesis and others in school can use Shanti Bhavan for their research. There is a lot of rich data with families, communities, child development, and measuring the impact of the school. I definitely see the potential for several graduate school projects that could come out of working with SB.

People can also help by finding good partners, teachers, volunteers, or supplies. In fact, I was talking to a teacher friend of mine over Memorial Day weekend and she had this idea that the kids could set up a pen pal exchange with her students here in the US. She said her students in the US could help raise funds or find supplies. Another example is a graphic designer I know who donated her services to our school. There are a lot of ways that people can connect with the school, through monetary donations, securing supplies, or services in kind.

Best regards,

The Shanti Bhavan Team