Dear Sankalp Patrons,

This issue of Akshara, is the final update on projects chosen for

the academic year 2018-2019, specifically voted for, at Daawat 2018.

Besides these project updates, other fundraising events and initiatives

by Sankalp that were carried out during the course of the year are

briefly recorded here.

We thank you for continued support and hope to see you at all our

events this year too!

Akshara

FOREWORD

Greetings!

I am delighted to be associated with Sankalp and to write this foreword for this biannual

newsletter, Akshara, for the concluded academic year 2017-2018. Through various fund-

raising initiatives, Sankalp has been funding educational and socio-economic development

projects in India over the years. In my view, this student organization not only has the no-

ble mission of helping communities in India, but also provides a platform for our students

to learn and nurture leadership skills.

For the past 23 years, Sankalp has funded a variety of projects ranging from primary edu-

cation to rural development. This year, at Daawat 2018, among the 8 presented projects pa-

trons and Sankalp members voted for 5 projects, of which three were then funded by

Sankalp, with money raised in the academic year 2017-2018.

The organization also strives to engage and give back to the local community here in

Ames. They regularly participate in the tree plantation initiative organized by The Ames

Foundation during Fall and Spring semesters. More recently Sankalp members have also

participated in the good work carried out by the folks at “Food At First” in Ames, a free

meal program and perishable food pantry, serving anyone who is hungry in the Ames, IA

area.

Besides the above other activities undertaken by Sankalp volunteers through the Spring se-

mester are presented here. Through this newsletter we hope to keep you, our patrons and

members, informed on all the goings-on of the year. I would like to sincerely thank you for

your continued support, guidance and goodwill! I hope you enjoy reading Akshara and pro-

vide your feedback to the Sankalp team.

Sincerely,

Manimaran Govindarasu (Faculty Advisor, Sankalp)

(Faculty Advisor, Sankalp)

UPDATES ON PROJECTS FUNDED FOR THE YEAR

2018-2019

CDS (Centre for Development Service), Odisha -

This project is aimed at working towards empowerment of the poor and marginalized in order to enable them to undertake development agendas on their own. CDS’s vision was to create a society that provides the poor with the right to survival and access to equal oppor-tunity without discrimination on grounds of caste, class, race, religion or region.

Funds provided by Sankalp were primarily geared towards the training workshops carried out across many of the designated districts and the schools therein. Some important benefits include helping young girls attend school during menstruation via the effective management of menstrual hygiene, rather than being forced to stay at home. Medical issues related to im-proper menstrual hygiene were also significantly reduced as a consequence of this program.

Divya Jyothi Karnataka - Braille Books, Mysore, Karnataka

Divya Jyothi has launched an ambitious project to provide Braille Books in Kannada for

visually impaired students from rural Mysore. Textbooks are transcribed into Braille for-

mat. These textbooks are then made available to students of the Divya Jyothi Trust. The

Books are also supplied to schools that cater to the visually impaired in Mysore. Textbook

requests by these schools are also entertained.

Most of the women under the guidance of trainers from READS were trained in the basics

of sewing as a convenient source of employment.

Rajabazar Education & Awareness Development Society (READS), Kolkata

With READS, two programs were undertaken, A remedial school-going program for

children of daily wage laborers, hailing from impoverished areas in Kolkata. The second

is a skills-driven training program for women from these areas to enable them o provide

for their families. The women are being taught the basics of sewing garments

FUNDRAISING DURING SPRING 2018

In Spring 2018 Sankalp volunteers helped raise funds through Daawat, Sankalp’s annual

fundraising event. Complementing funds raised through football volunteering (4500 $

from the Fall 2017 session) we were able to raise $8,000 from Daawat in Spring 2018.

We then, kicked off the fall semester with a Fresher’s party, for students interested in the

activities of Sankalp to know more about the organization and to get involved. Members

bonded over pizza and discussed possible avenues that Sankalp could explore.

SPRING 2018

Every year, Sankalp actively participates in events conducted by the Hindu Temple

in Madrid, Iowa. In September, we volunteered for the Highway cleanup program

along with the other volunteers from, the temple community

In order to share our knowledge and experience of Indian culture, Sankalp in col-

laboration with the International Students and Scholars Office (ISSO) conducted an

event ‘India & the Culture’ on Iowa state university campus.

.

In October 2018,our volunteers partnered with the ‘Ames Foundation’ to participate in the

tree plantation drive. We helped plant Ash trees along the Southdale neighborhood in

Ames.

In December 2018. Sankalp was awarded the ‘2018 Ames Foundation Contributor of

the year ’ at the Annual Ames Chamber of commerce event. This award was in recogni-

tion of Sankalp’s efforts in bringing together volunteers to help the community over the

years. Our vice president Vishal, received the award from the foundation officials at a

private ceremony.

SPRING 2018

Followed by this was the most awaited event of the year – the World Cuisine 2018 that took place at the Memorial Union on ISU campus in November. Nothing unites everyone like food and Sankalp volunteers, proved this to be true by cooking together Indian delica-cies and touting their recipes to inquisitive foodies. This event conducted by the Interna-tional student council (ISC) helped Sankalp raise about $550 for funding sustainable pro-jects.

A new fundraising initiative taken up by Sankalp was the Pizza Sales at ISU’s College of design in addition to hosting Giveback nights at Blaze pizza. These events allowed Sankalp to raise about $200 in total which will aid our continued support to volunteer organizations.

SPRING 2018

In December, Sankalp also Participated in the Girl power program, in collaboration with YWCA where we held an interactive session with young girls from the Ames middle school about Indian culture Indian way of life. This event was conducted primarily to highlighting the cultural similarities and differences between countries and also fostering mutual respect and tolerance towards the same. A major part of our funds is obtained from Football volunteering. Sankalp volunteers help support the staff at Football games that take place throughout the fall semester. Volunteers

help with everything ranging from ticketing to traffic handling. Sankalp volunteers brave the weather no matter what to do their bit for helping people.

To expand our reach, Sankalp set foot into community interaction programs by collab-orating with the YWCA-Ames to take part in the International friendship fair held at the Ames Public library in November. Here, members of Sankalp shared the history and significance of India’s unique cultural heritage. We also shared Indian food,showcased handicrafts and spoke to members of the community about the various activities of Sankalp.

To show our gratitude to all the volunteers who stand with Sankalp throughout the semes-ter, we held a Volunteer Appreciation Dinner. This dinner also marked the beginning of preparations for Daawat 2019. Amidst delicious food and close friends, we looked back on

our events during the semester and concluded the year with positive vibes and with clear goals for the spring semester.

SPRING 2018

Thank you !

Sankalp continues to be what it is thanks to your patronage and

unrelenting support over the last 23 years.

Please contact us if you have any suggestions or comments.

To know more about Sankalp please visit our website :

www.sankalp.stuorg.iastate.edu

Feel free to email suggestions/comments to

sankalp.iastate@gmail.com.