Next Steps

This video of Alok School in Dhaka was made by Agami intern Ohona Chowdhury. Ohona joined as an Agami intern in summer 2010.

Agami interns Azwa, Daraksha and Nayeem made the following video on Agami's scholarship program.

Education is a privilege and a necessity. I believe that I have been privileged to receive education at the finest of institutions, but it would mean nothing if I didn’t put that achievement to greater use. I was moved by the importance of education during my summer internship with Grameen Bank, where majority of the loans taken by mothers were used to educate the children. They later on went to pursue higher education in the cities and relocated their parents there for a better life. After this experience I took on a student job at college to work with elementary and middle school children and help those with their school work. During this job, I found how quickly I can bond with children and it felt truly wonderful to empower them so that they could go on to share their knowledge with others as well. Working for Agami further strengthened my belief in the strength of education.

In an underprivileged country like Bangladesh, most of our economic, social and moral issues are due to the high rate of illiteracy. Because our country’s children are not properly educated, we as a nation are unable to move forward and progress like our other neighboring countries. During our Independence war, the enemy forces tried to cripple our nation from the very beginning by wiping out the eminent and brilliant professors and teachers. The reason is: education forms the backbone of a society.

I was confident that Agami would help me to contribute in arming the future of our country with the most powerful weapon: education. With this internship I got the opportunity to share my knowledge with the underprivileged children and learnt from them as well. Even after facing hardships of various forms, these children have the thirst for knowledge and a better life. I have heard many inspiring stories about the difficulties parents have to go through to keep their children in school. The economic stress of surviving in an urban city like Dhaka where employment is hard to find has led to many families move back to the villages. Even so, some parents chose the hard decision of the father staying back so that the child goes to school while the mother stays in the village with the other siblings. That to me is nothing short of inspiration. These stories also helped me realize the numerous sacrifices my own parents made to send me to an expensive private school in America.

In addition to providing free education and a meal a day, the Agami foundation run schools also provide the guidance and encouragement for children after the 5th grade (which is the highest grade these schools have). And some of these children go on to acquire industrial skills which they use to provide for their family. I was amazed by the number of young girls in each school and the many success stories that I heard from the teachers and principals. Empowering women in society is such a key factor for the growth of a nation. Even the underprivileged understand that. Deep inside I was really thankful to all the parents who sent their daughters to school instead of marrying them off.

Everyone says that the people of our country lack the drive and integrity to think about our nation as one and work first for the betterment of our country then personal gain. Working with Agami, strengthened my belief that Bangladesh hasn’t entirely lost all hope, that there are still some selfless good people who find solace in helping others. Some of the founders of the schools started with their own money just for the cause of doing good in society. They saw it upon themselves to take responsibility and contribute without the intention of getting anything in return at all. Their only purpose was to provide basic education to those who are most deprived. It made me realize that even today in this selfish and materialistic world, there are people who care about those for whom no one else does. Agami was an eye opening experience and I am really glad I did this.

Tanzina Enam,

Spring 2011 Junior at Carleton College, Minnesota

This past summer, I had a period of a few weeks of free time. I decided that the best use of this time would be to get some practical experience and apply for an internship. Though I had not identified any particular area that I wanted to pursue, I knew I wanted a position where I would be able to make an immediate, lasting impact. Unfortunately, most of the places I found required time commitments that I could not satisfy. Having football summer camps during the first and last months of summer, I simply could not dedicate enough time to the jobs I was finding.

While the local companies may not have thought so, I knew I had enough time left in my vacation to make a difference somewhere. After consulting my mother, I decided that since she was already planning on going to Bangladesh, I could work for an organization there. Again, many places required more time than I had available; we only planned on being there for about a week. Eventually, I came across Agami, a non profit organization with which my aunt is involved. Agami was excited to work with me, despite the short amount of time I was able to offer.

My aunt told me about Alok Shishu Shikkhaloy, a school for underprivileged children that would appreciate any interaction with students there and would welcome classroom supplies. Through talks with Agami directors, we learned the specifics of what we could do to help and my project officially began.

I began a fundraising effort to raise money for school supplies, and awareness for my project. I contacted friends and family whose interest and well-wishes for my endeavor helped me raise $1030 in just a few days. After allocating a portion of this money to spend on stationery, I traveled to a teacher supplies store in San Jose and purchased various items for the children as well as the teachers, such as pencils, stickers, posters and workbooks. Upon hearing about my efforts, the storekeeper also donated more pencils and crayons. I boarded my plane confident that the things I was taking with me would be put to good use.

Upon arriving in Dhaka, my mother contacted the principal of the school to set up a schedule. The original plan was to purchase a computer with the rest of the money I raised and then go to the school to set it up, meet the children, and distribute the supplies. This gave us a few days to figure out what type of computer we could afford as well as giving us an opportunity to spend time with family and go sight-seeing.

Unfortunately, it rained during much of this period, preventing us from going out much. Even worse was the fact that the rain caused flooding in the area around the school. While the school itself was not too damaged, people living in the nearby areas were forced to move to the school for shelter. Here in California, we often have stretches of rain that last for days. Never in my life has it gotten so bad that it caused flooding that drove people out of their own homes. In Bangladesh, a fairly moderate storm can cause severe damage. This was one of the most important things I took away from my trip; it was a visible reminder of the reason I started my project in the first place.

When it finally came time to visit the school, I was starting to wonder what other surprises waited for me during my actual meeting. The first was the path we took to get there; we started on a typical city road that led to a typical dirt road and ended with a muddy walk on foot. This led us to the school, where we first met with the principal, who told us that the students had prepared a few presentations for us, after which we could present our gifts and receipt for their new computer. She led us into their auditorium, a small room that, in America, would generally sit 20 students but amazingly seated 70. We were greeted with a combination of wonder and excitement. After introducing ourselves, we watched recitals of speeches, songs, and poems. These had clearly been rehearsed for some time. We were appreciative of this gesture, as it meant they cared enough to spend their limited school time to practice a routine designed to entertain us. After they finished their performances, I went to the front of the room to display the things I bought back in America. We passed them out to the students and were happy to watch their reactions of joy. As it came time to leave, I presented proof of our trip to the computer store to much applause from the students and staff. Their smiles told me that what I had done for them was truly going to make a difference in their education and, ultimately, their futures.

Even now, four and a half months after the experience, I feel that my time this summer could not have been better spent. The project I have started has the potential to affect kids in America as well as kids from third-world countries for the rest of their lives. The children we help will get tangible benefits, such as the supplies that I provided to Alok Shishu Shikkhaloy, as well as the knowledge that people far away care about them in this world. Similarly, kids here will gain an understanding of differences in lives of people just like them in a different part of the world. They also have the opportunity to use any free time, no matter how small, to help those who need it. I suppose that is the reason I still look upon my time so fondly: in the middle of a busy summer, with only one week, I made a change for the better in a place that doesn’t receive as much attention as it deserves.

Ejaz Haque

(11th Grade, Harker School)

Last winter break, my family and I visited the slum schools of Bangladesh , a country which has been ranked by United Nations as one of the world’s poorest and most densely populated countries. Although Bangladesh is plagued with poverty, there are many organizations, like Agami, which are trying to cure the country of its illness. Agami has given hundreds of poor children the opportunity for an education, and this winter break I was blessed to be a part of their association on my trip.

Months before my trip, I came up with an idea of making quilts for the homeless in the Bay Area. But when my Bangladesh trip came knocking on the door, I thought it would be a great idea to have hand-made quilts for the poor children of Bangladesh . With the help of family and friends, I was able to make twenty quilts and collect an assortment of toys and other donations. But how would I make sure that these charitable items would go to those who really need them? This question was quickly solved by the wonderful foundation of Agami. The leaders of Agami helped organize which schools I would visit and what I could do to help. In addition to organizing my trip, Agami leaders also gave me a few solar lights that I would donate to the schools along with my blankets and toys. Also Agami leaders gave me an opportunity to teach a few computer basics to the children of Alok Shishu Shikhalay.  With my taped up boxes full of donations, my family and I headed off to the airport to begin my life-altering experience.

The first school I visited was Pearabagh school located in the Maghbazar district in Dhaka . My family and I distributed a few lights and blankets among the children. We also got to converse with the teachers and the children. Unfortunately our chats were cut short due to final exams. One thing I really admired was the liveliness and spirit these children had. And this liveliness seemed to be present at the second school I visited, Alok Shishu Shikhalay.

At Alok I was able to donate the blankets, lights, and toys, and I was able to interact with the children. During my visit, I showed the children all the possibilities with the computer that had been brought to them by a previous Agami intern. After showing the kids a PowerPoint, I was able to show a few kids how to use the paint program on the computer, which they all seemed to really enjoy. I ended my day by the children teaching me a few things. The children took me to their playground where we played tag and jump rope. It was nice to know that some games are universal no matter where you are, and kids will always love to play.

During my experience I met wonderful and bubbly children, but I also met inspirational teachers and principals, who truly want the best for every child attending the school. Although some of the teachers are not paid, they continue to come to school to help the children and still go to work afterwards. It amazed me that even after a hard day at school; they still manage to find the energy to go to work in order to provide for themselves. These teachers and principals are heroes in my eyes, and I feel they should definitely be credited for their dedication and altruism.

Teachers and principals can see that there are flaws in society, but they have some ideas that could definitely benefit the program. For example, the principal of Pearabagh has suggested that schools should add supplementary lessons into their schedules. Supplementary classes would be like sewing or auto repair lessons, so if the children do find themselves taken away from school, they can find a way to support themselves in desperate times. Another idea was establishing a seasonal medical clinic and also providing more outside school activities for the children. Both schools feel deeply grateful for all the donations from Agami, and hope with the support of Agami they will continue to build more schools.

Bangladesh was truly one of a kind and simply unforgettable. If I had a chance I would definitely do it over again. The smiles of the children and the motivation of teachers is something that everyone should see. This trip has just solidified my support for Agami, and pushed me to make a quilting club at my school, so I can send more quilts to those heroic children, whom I have met. After traveling almost across the globe, I finally understand why mother loves Mother Teresa’s quote that “It’s not how much we give, but how much love we put into it”.

Monisha Malek

Fremont , California