The EKAL Power of Education Forum was held at Impact Center, Global Mall on Sunday, September 7, 2014.- Atlanta Dunia -

EKAL Makes Waves With First-Ever Power of Education Forum in Atlanta

The EKAL Power of Education Forum was held at Impact Center, Global Mall on Sunday, September 7, 2014. Ekal, a 501(c) (3) tax-exempt non-profit entity has been working since 1986 in neglected rural and tribal areas to eradicate illiteracy. It operates and supports innovative, One teacher-One Room non-formal schools for under-served communities, providing free basic education, healthcare, vocational training and empowering them. Today, there are over 54,000 EKAL schools in India, with over 1.5 million children studying under this program.

Ekal’s first ever Power Of Education Forum in Atlanta brought together community leaders and prominent EKAL supporters to explore new opportunities and campaign ideas for Ekal. Panelists and participants began arriving after 11:00 AM. The venue was very elegantly appointed, reflecting the importance of the event. While members registered and settled down with refreshments, TV Asia interviewed the Panelist one on one. Promptly at noon, MC Ms. Rina Gupta kicked off the meet with the traditional Lamp Lighting Ceremony by Panel members and Keynote speaker; Ekal Team led the chanting of Ganesh Vandana and attendees joined in. After this, the MC introduced the SE region President of Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation, Mr. Chander Aggarwal, who has been a pillar of strength for EKAL Vidyalaya since its inception in Atlanta.

Next, Ms. Rina Gupta introduced the executive director of Ekal, Mrs. Ranjani Saigal. Mrs. Ranjani Saigal brings a breadth of experience to her role. Yet, as Ms. Gupta rightly said, Ms. Saigal’s passion for education and Ekal surpasses all her professional accomplishments. In her presentation, she touched upon Ekal’s achievement in terms of being the only pan-India NGO and its long tradition of running very effectively on an extremely low overhead. She gave snippets from her conversations with Acharyas and the children themselves. Her recounting of a quote from an EKAL child - “Hum Bharat kaa nirmaan kar rahe hain”(We are building India), brought a rousing applause! Bringing empowerment to over 54,000 Villages in rural India is just one of the many things that EKAL does every day.

The Keynote address was by a stalwart- Prof. Jagdish Seth. He is an internationally recognized business consultant whose client list includes AT&T, BellSouth, Ford, GE, Motorola, Square D, Whirlpool and Sprint. Professor Seth took a wide perspective and made observations on the key ingredient that has taken a society to prosperity. In that regard he emphasized that Education is an equalizer that can offset the disadvantages of one’s circumstances. He engaged the audience in his characteristic witty style and endorsed EKAL’s mission of providing education to India’s under-served children.
Next, the well-known Atlanta Chapter President, Mr. Shiv Aggarwal delivered a speech on behalf of Mr. Mohan Kapur, a powerful leadership strategist and motivational speaker. He described the reasons why people give and urged all those present to give generously to EKAL. It is important to note that EKAL is not a charity; it is a nation building effort. What touched a chord was the beautiful way he weaved in the poem “Do It Anyway”. This left an impact so powerful that it goes even beyond that room or that afternoon.

The Panelists on the Forum lent star power to the event. The first Panelist was Dr. Ravi Sarma, a high-profile person who has a very successful career in Hematology/Oncology and is loved for his philanthropy. As a long time EKAL supporter, he challenged EKAL to take the action to the next level. He urged EKAL to increase the fund-raising by leaps. He made a great point in advocating a common “United Way” type of platform for like-minded movements like EKAL, Aim for SEVA, SEWA International and so on. His point was that a large federation can make a more compelling representation to our elected Representatives.
Mr. Suresh Sharma, an esteemed Panelist, spoke from the depth of his experience on the ground. Mr. Suresh Sharma is an internationally-acknowledged investor and business leader known for his pragmatic vision and operational excellence. He is an expert on how to drive sustainable business growth. He brought the same insight to EKAL. He endorsed EKALS’s holistic approach of providing Education, health and empowerment and made a strong case to re-think the way we define success today. He advocated that rural and remote India be strengthened so that India grows in all regions.

Dr. Indran Indrakrishnan is a Gastroenterologist, a Professor and he is passionate about increasing awareness about colorectal cancer. Despite all this, he is never too busy to give a helping hand. As a Panelist at the Forum, he spoke about his vision for EKAL and he asked a very loaded question - “How many in this room are born and educated here in the United States”? Not one person. His message was clear: EKAL’s support base must expand to include the next generation who will carry the torch forward. Dr. Indrakrishnan affirmed his support for EKAL and commended the strides made thus far. At the same time, he pointed out an opportunity to improve the website so that financial reports are easily accessible. Mrs. Ranjani Saigal assured him that the new website is almost ready for launch and that this will be a lot easier to navigate.

The Panelist segment ended with a terrific presentation by Mr. Kiran Kodathila, President and CEO of @N2NServicesInc. He is a Technology Innovator, a visionary in Mobile Education and has a focus in philanthropy as well. His vision is to leverage Mobile Education to enable EKAL teachers (Acharyas) to be tens of times more effective than they are today. Are EKAL schools ready for this technology? Listen to the Ted Talk by Sugata Mitra, titled “Hole in the Wall” for the word on this! Mr Kiran went on to present an app for commodity exchange. What better way to spur growth! Mr. Kiran looks upon sustainability not as a far-range goal but as an immediate goal for survival. His commitment was to assist EKAL in implementing mobile technology in their schools.
Ms.Ranjani Saigal took a few questions from the audience about how to sponsor schools and how to sign up to visit an EKAL school in India. Mr. Shiv Aggarwal, Atlanta Chapter President took the floor and thanked the businesses and individuals that helped to make this happen- Ashiana Restaurant for the refreshments and the excellent spread for lunch, TV Asia for local media coverage, Mr. Vinod Karia for photography, Mr. Rahul Chandra from World Hindu Network, Houston TX. EKAL is very grateful to local media for their support and to all donors for their firm and long-standing commitment to Ekal. Overall, it was a very inspiring event that brought together the brightest minds and the kindest hearts of Atlanta. The next step is for EKAL leaders to take a deep dive into each of these propositions to revolutionize the development of villages in India!