Uddami Project: Giving Hope to Disadvantaged Youth in India

In a city where 60 percent of residents live below the poverty line, most people can barely afford the essentials. Though Kolkata (formerly known as Calcutta), India, is filled with organizations that provide room, board, and basic education to poor children, Alison Saracena wanted to do more than just offer a temporary solution to a growing problem.

"No one could be in Kolkata and not be moved to do something to try to alleviate the overwhelming poverty," said Saracena co-founder of the Uddami Computer Training Centre (UCTC).

"Uddami" means "achieving full potential," and the goal of the UCTC is to provide locals with free computer training, access to a better job, and, most importantly, a chance to achieve their full potential and create a better life.

Because education is one of the few avenues leading to a better job, it's essential to obtain a Class 10 or 12 certificate -- roughly equivalent to a high-school diploma in the United States. Many students from poor families drop out of school due to lack of money, the need to help support the family, and the fact that there's little or no encouragement to stay in school. But with the UCTC's help, students can learn computer skills and get good jobs, even without a certificate.

A Slow Journey

The center began humbly in Bryan Forst and Saracena's flat in 1999. Saracena, who has a background in teaching, and her husband Forst, a software developer, founded the UCTC using their own money to provide free vocational training to disadvantaged youths between the ages of 16 and 28.

To split the teaching duties, Frost taught Saracena computer basics and, in turn, they both taught computer skills to the students. Three boys from a residential home made up their first class, and Forst and Saracena taught them to complete the computer portion of their National Open School ( NOS) exam, a test for students who didn't attend school regularly but wish to acquire a Class 10 or 12 certificate.

With only two laptops and a donated PC, the growing program needed more computers, so the couple purchased two machines and started their next round of classes with 14 more students from a local residential home (six hearing boys, two deaf boys, and six girls).

A year later, the founders moved the center from their own home to a small room in a friend's flat. They found another PC and began teaching smaller classes with four students per class, one per computer.

In 2001, they put an ad in the local paper and hired two local teachers to help instruct classes. They rented a new space and brought in more computers.

As word spread about the school and the free classes, more students enrolled. [same paragraph]By 2004, the school became so popular, the founders had to create a waiting list. That year, the school also opened a library -- a rare facility for poor students -- with English and Bengali books.

Everyday Struggles

"Often I was only one step ahead of the students," said Saracena. As she learned more about computers, she developed a curriculum focused on doing real-worldprojects.

In India, most teaching is done using rote methods, essentially memorization of concepts and terms. But while memorization prepares students for tests, it doesn't really teach students how to use a computer.

"The main struggle is teaching the students how to think," said Saracena. "Also there is a serious fear of failure and a cultural inability to say 'I don’t know' –- we have to teach that mistakes are how we learn and that it's acceptable to say that you don’t know something."

Finding jobs in Kolkata for the center's students is an ongoing battle. Many business owners don't believe that UCTC students know how to use computers. But the founders are working to help students get jobs in other areas of India and throughout the world.

"It's hard sometimes for our students to even have a chance to show their abilities when people won't let them in the front door," said Saracena. "Also salaries are very low and many companies will offer pay for a computer-skilled employee that is only slightly above that of the fellow who fetches tea every day. It's frustrating."

Special Needs

In India, a very comprehensive disability law exists, but it's rarely implemented. Students who are deaf, blind, or disabled have learned to cope in school and the UCTC doesn't give them much in the way of special treatment, but Saracena wants to change that.

"Our deaf students are naturally suited to learning computer skills as they are very visual," she said. "Our teachers need to modify their teaching methods -- none of the teachers had special training prior to UCTC in working with the deaf."

At UCTC, teachers use a mixture of natural sign (mime and gesture), American Sign Language ( ASL), and Indian sign to communicate with deaf students, though the students don't have trouble understanding hearing people [through lip-reading?]. The biggest problem, she said, is that the deaf aren't taught much language in school and that keeps them from getting a job using the computer.

The English language is another hurdle. Though many of the students know English, most are taught only Bengali in school. And there is a serious lack of software that supports Bengali.

Despite the limitations, more than 70 students have graduated from the school and many have moved onto successful jobs.

Success Stories

UCTC's Web site is filled with the smiling faces of past and present students, and their self-authored stories (UCTC Success Stories) show that they are grateful for the chance to learn, find better jobs, and for the hope of a brighter future.

Krishna Das is one such success story. An artist, he went through the school's program and is now working as a graphic designer in Dubai. Saracena and Forst were able to teach him to use tools to enhance his artistic gift, and he found a job doing what he loves, at a salary three to four times what he would be paid in Kolkata.

One of the schools first graduates, Rabia Khatoon, age 20, took courses, and then the two founders trained her to become a teacher for the school.

"She has surpassed all of our expectations as a teacher, and she is currently helping two other organizations train their teachers (also UCTC graduates) and start a computer program based on the UCTC model," said Saracena.

Like so many Kolkata residents, Khatoon had a difficult life: Her father died when she was young and her mother begged on the streets. Now she lives in a working women's hostel and continues to teach at Uddami. She is grateful for the help of "Aunty Alison" and "Uncle Brian" and just took her Class 12 exams.

"If I pass in this exam, then I am lucky and I will do graduation," said Khatoon. "My life has changed since I took the computer course because I am working as a teacher in Uddami. With my salary I can support myself and as well as my family, too."

Funding

Driven to help the people of Kolkata, Saracena and Forst funded the first two years of the program from their own pockets -- and with the generous help of friends.

Knowing that they didn't have the ability to keep funding the program on their own, they applied for and received foundation grants from the United States, France, and Spain.

One of the center's main funders supports only women and children. While Saracena wants to train women and give them a chance to learn, she's working within a culture where that isn't always practical.

"I have had to balance that idea with the reality that most women here get married and don't work after marriage. We have only a limited amount of space in the school and it was hard for me to rationalize training a young woman who would end up not being able to work due to pressures from her husband and his family."

In a place where women's lib is not yet a reality, helping the men helps the women as well. Many of the center's early students were boys in their late teens and early 20s who were supporting their mothers and sisters. "It's hard to get people in the West to recognize that when we help these young men we are actually also helping their families, primarily the female members," noted Saracena.

To help the program grow, Saracena and Forst plan to open a for-profit offshoot of the UCTC that will provide back-office support for domestic and international clients. They plan to hire graduates and fund the school through this business.

Finding Inspiration

In the pre-monsoon heat this month, where it's close to 100 degrees Fahrenheit with humidity hovering around 90 percent, it's often hard for Saracena to find any inspiration. But even amid the searing heat, she offers sage advice for anyone serious about embarking on a similar project.

"People are always asking us how we did it, how we started," she said. "Our answer is: Just do it! If your heart is in it and it's something you really want to do, everything will fall into place. It may not be easy, but it will happen and people will be there to support you."