Students to receive career guidance, can apply for scholarships

(MissionNewswire) The Jaigopal Garodia Government Girls’ Higher Secondary School in Choolaimedu, India, has a new STEM lab thanks to alumni from Don Bosco Egmore and Grundfos Pumps India Pvt Ltd. A group of 1997 alumni wanted to ensure that the school had an enhanced learning environment for its students.

According to an article in the Hindu Newspaper, the school has designed a three-year hands-on program for 50 students in grades 6 and 7, focusing on basic to advanced STEM concepts, including physics, electronics, robotics, AI and aerospace. Students will have sessions with industry experts and participate in industry visits as part of the program. They will also be given career guidance in grades 10 and 12 and be eligible to apply to LMES Foundation’s college education scholarship program.

This initiative is a step toward achieving the state government’s mission of bridging the gender ratio gap in the STEM workforce. The sponsors, Grundfos Pumps India and the Don Bosco alumni, as well as the LMES Foundation, believe that this initiative will have a measurable impact on the number of girls who enroll for in science in grade 11 and beyond to college.

Deepu Anthony, one of the Don Bosco alums, said in the article, “This program is an experiment we are carrying out with Jaigopal Garodia Government Girls’ Higher Secondary School. Analyzing the measurable outcomes, we will see how this program can be taken to other state government schools. We decided to bring LMES Foundation on board as the implementation partner, as its parent company, LMES Academy, is engaged in establishing STEM labs in private schools. The foundation has also been conducting a one-day STEM education orientation for the schools.”

Anthony added, “In 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when education went online, our alumni donated 150 laptops for students of an Adi Dravidar School. After that, when education returned to physical classrooms from 2022 to 2024, we also built classrooms in government schools. We aim to tackle at least one social project every year.”

Access to professional training and workforce development services is highly valued in India. While India has the world’s largest youth population, it has yet to capitalize on this, leaving some 30% of this population without employment, education or training.

India’s youth face a lack of educational opportunities due to issues of caste, class and gender. Almost 44% of the workforce is illiterate and less than 10% of the working-age population has completed a secondary education. In addition, many secondary school graduates do not have the knowledge and skills to compete in today’s changing job market.

###

Sources:

Hindu Newspaper article by Prince Frederick

ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)

ANS – India – Don Bosco Alumni ‘Gift’ a STEM Lab to Government School

Salesian Missions – India

World Bank – India