Every book I read helps educate a child in India

Girl’s education is a cause that is very close to my heart. I have been so lucky to be born in a family and grow up in a society that does not let my gender prevent me from attaining an excellent education. My experiences from eight years at Hockaday, a school dedicated to this mission has shown me firsthand why creating intelligent, self-assured young women is so important.

There are millions of girls in India who do not have any semblance of the opportunities that I and all of my peers in the US enjoy. This despite the many studies which have shown that educating a girl is a sure way to improving the quality of life of a community. Educating a girl, especially one in her late teens and early twenties, gives her the power to make her own decisions, the power to decide what is right for her own family, and the power to shape her own future. Educating a young woman will ensure that her children get the opportunity for education in the future. Educating young women leads to a substantially lower occurrence of poverty, disease, and violence in households and around her community.

Given all of the above, I am dedicating my fundraiser to Second Chance, Pratham’s program that empowers older girls and young women who have dropped out of school to get their high school diploma.
In 2014, nearly 4,000 girls assisted by Pratham appeared for the (GED equivalent) exam and more than 70% of those passed, which is a rate higher than the national average. The same techniques and innovative approaches that have enabled Pratham to improve child literacy and education rates in India are also helping Pratham be more successful in helping girls earn their high school diploma.

If my efforts to inform opinion and raise funds for this program in the US can result in even one additional girl getting her high school diploma, I will be so happy. Pratham needs only $500 on average to tutor a girl for 2 years and prepare her to take the exam.

To the Pratham girls in India I will say study hard and have faith that you can do this. To my US friends who are in high school right now, I will recommend the same, with a caveat. Along with academic excellence and a strong work ethic (as evidenced by high GPA and SAT/ACT scores), you will need some unusual extra-curricular activities and a committed community service record to impress the college admissions officers. Your essays and recommendation letters are equally important factors. And finally the institutional priorities of a college have to be in your favor. Just do your best and leave the rest. Upon graduation, the right college awaits.

Once you have been accepted by the colleges, here is my advice for choosing the right college. Just as with school, classes and teachers, the right college for you is all about the right fit. Like wearing a comfortable pair of shoes, like being at home in your favorite PJs. Once you have determined your top 3 or 4 choices (from amongst the ones which have admitted you), you should visit each one of those college and get “a feel” for each campus – the students, the professors, the administrators, the cafeterias, the dorms, the vibe et al. And then close your eyes, take a deep breath and on a ranking-neutral basis, choose the one that feels right for you. And for the next four years, you will find yourself the happiest there!