Holistic Higher Education
One of the major education related challenges in India is the high rate of drop-outs among rural & underprivileged students after finishing school, due to economic constraints, and pressure from the family to start earning. In the case of girl students, this pressure to drop-out is often compounded by societal norms, thus making it that much harder for them.
Those who do manage to continue further and start their college education, many a times find it difficult to cope up with the changed environment from a rural or government school to a college in a town or city. A change in the medium of instruction from vernacular to English, a peer group that has students with better exposure and resources further adds to their struggles.
Orphans, divyang (differently-abled), and students from distressed backgrounds such as those with a single parent, families impacted by cancer, covid, alcoholism, farmer suicides etc. are among those more prone to dropping out at the end of school or during college.
Having recognized these challenges, GEF started the Holistic Higher Education (HHE) program in 2005, to reach out to deserving students from such underprivileged sections of the society, and provide them with a complete support system to enable them to compete and excel in their college studies.
HHE identifies high-potential students, and catalyzes their all-round development by providing them with the resources they may need. The resources could include interest-free loans (to be paid after they start earning) towards college fees, living expenses, and co- & extra-curricular activities, personal mentoring for settling down in the new environment & excelling in the chosen career path, career counselling and more. The objective is to not only support them with financial capital, but also to help them develop their social capital.
GEF accords special attention towards education of orphans, divyang (differently-abled), and students from distressed backgrounds such as those with single parent, families impacted by cancer, covid, alcoholism etc. For such students, more than academic brilliance, the emphasis is on providing students an education that is appropriate to their abilities and can help them in getting meaningful employment.