Mentoring underprivileged students

Abhyudaya is a transformative experiential learning course in which participants of the full-time PGDM programme mentor school children from underprivileged backgrounds. These bright school children are called Sitara, which means a star.

SPJIMR participants visit Sitara homes throughout the academic year to conduct mentoring sessions. Based on their first-hand exposure to the challenges of low-income neighbourhoods, participants also understand the significance of sustainable business development.

For the past 15 years, the non-profit arm of Abhyudaya has been addressing UN SDG 4 of Quality Education by engaging actively with the Sitara community. It educates 550+ Sitaras and offers financial assistance, health and safety programmes, digital literacy programmes, and several holistic development activities. More than 50% of Sitaras are girls.

Objectives &
Outcomes

Abhyudaya has twin objectives:

  • Help PGDM participants become socially aware, empathetic managers with a first-hand understanding of urban issues
  • Help Sitaras fulfil their potential and become financially self-reliant

The impact is assessed through annual surveys of SPJIMR participants, Sitaras, and Sitara parents. Survey results are consistently positive:

  • SPJIMR participants report that their empathy levels have increased, and their understanding of urban poverty/base of the pyramid has improved
  • Sitaras say that their academics, English language skills and general knowledge have increased due to the programme. They also say that they are sharing what they learn with neighbours, siblings, and school friends
  • Sitara parents feel that Abhyudaya had a positive impact on the children, leading to more self-confidence, awareness of the world, and better interpersonal behaviour

Partnerships

Abhyudaya partners with 60 schools in the K-West Ward of Mumbai, from where the Sitaras are selected. Several institutions of the Bhavan’s Trust such as the Sardar Patel Institute of Technology (SPIT), A.H. Wadia High School, Bhavan’s College Andheri, Bhavan’s Yoga Bharti, and Bhavan’s Nature and Adventure Centre offer Sitaras benefits of their teaching facilities, staff and student volunteers.

Abhyudaya has also built long-term relationships with NGOs, Corporates, SPJIMR Alumni, Donors, and Educational & Cultural institutions. Our partners provide financial support, laptops for Sitaras, medical camps, personal safety courses, counselling programs, life skills programs, scholarship assistance, etc.

Several international schools and colleges visit Abhyudaya to learn from our model. These include Think Global School, New York, USA; Rijnland Lyceum, The Netherlands; HEC Montreal, Canada; IT Bandung, Indonesia; St Thomas University, Minnesota, USA; and HWZ, Switzerland. Abhyudaya also partners with international teachers and researchers on workshops and research projects that address urban issues.

Catalyst - Abhyudaya Newsletter

Accolades

2022

SPJIMR rated by PIR as one of the top 4 schools worldwide for positive social impact.

2021

SPJIMR recognized as a “pioneering school” with the highest “Level 5” rating by PIR (Positive Impact Rating), a global student-led rating of business school sustainability

2019

Award for SPJIMR for 'Excellence in Institutional Social Responsibility', at the 6th Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) Higher Education Excellence Awards.

2018

Innovative Practices Award by the United Nations Global Compact Network India for the work we are doing towards furthering the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 4 - Quality Education)

2016

SPJIMR selected as a Champion of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Management Education (UNPRME) in recognition of our non-classroom initiatives.

2015

Gold award at the Indian Management Conclave under the theme of “Innovations in teaching Methodology”.

2013

Jury award at the World Education Summit in the "Innovation by Management Institute” category.

2012

"Big Idea to Solve Big Problem" Award from GMAC, the body which holds the GMAT examination.

Giving to Abhyudaya

Thank you for considering a donation to Abhyudaya. Your gift will support and help grow the Abhyudaya network and enable us to reach out to more students from economically disadvantaged sections.

Donations are to be made to Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, specifying that the funds are intended for the Abhyudaya project. Donations in India are fully tax-exempt under section 80G(2)(iiif) of the Income Tax Act. Donations from overseas are also accepted since we have FCRA registration.

To know more visit our social media pages:

Facebook:  Abhyudaya-SPJIMR | Mumbai | Facebook

LinkedIn: Abhyudaya-SPJIMR | LinkedIn

For donation queries, please write to:

Arati Nagaraj, Director Abhyudaya
arati.nagaraj@spjimr.org

Abhyudaya Office
abhyudaya@spjimr.org

Snapshots

Abhyudaya Centre

Mentoring visit (Sitara home)

Hastantaran

Tug of War (mentor-mentee bonding activity)

Community meeting (Sitara parents)

Educators’ meeting/workshop

Summer camp (creative activity)

Computer class

Robotics

Sitaras

Rijnland Lyceum, Netherlands Visit

International schools visit SPJIMR to understand the benefits of Abhyudaya’s  experiential learning  interventions.

HEC Montreal, Canada Visit

Mentor-Mentee Meet

Think Global school visit

St Thomas University Minnesota

Syracuse University visit

AppLy Now