Yashoda Foundation proudly unveils ‘MASTI’, a pioneering initiative designed to enrich the education of underprivileged children through holistic learning experiences across various domains!
Hyderabad, March 16th, 2024: Yashoda Foundation, a beacon of hope in the realm of social empowerment, proudly unveiled its latest transformative initiative, MASTI (Music, Arts, Science, Technology, and Innovation) Centers. Chief Guests Mr K Sreenivas Reddy, IPS, Commissioner of Police, Hyderabad City and Ms L Rama Devi, Director Emerging Technologies, OSD, Dept. of IT & Communications & Start Up Telangana, Government of Telangana, formally launched it today at the Telangana State Police Command and Control Centre, Banjara Hills. Guests of Honor Mr Meela Jaydev, President FTCCI; Ms Ritu Shah, Chairperson FICCI FLO; Dr Ms. Sajida Khan, Audio Engineer; Dr Ms. Somdatta Karak, Senior Scientist, CCMB; Ms. Sriharshitha Chada, Legal Consultant for Bachpan Bachao Andolan and Ms. Shefali Rao, Co-Founder, Food4thought, graced the occasion.
This initiative of Yashoda Foundation will unite community leaders, esteemed guests, and families to champion the cause of underprivileged children’s education in music, arts, sciences, technology, and innovation. Children and parents from MASTI Centers shared heartwarming stories of growth and aspiration, highlighting the initiative’s impact. The event underscored the collective endeavour to expand MASTI’s reach, inviting broader community support to empower and inspire India’s youth.
Mr K Sreenivas Reddy, speaking on the occasion said, MASTI makes learning a fun activity for children. Its commendable that the Yashoda Foundation is providing education to more than 1600 kids including tribal children. Rural areas lack quality education, the teachers in Government schools are extremely good, but for various reasons are unable to put to practice their best talent, the circumstances in government schools are not conducive for them, their good work doesn’t get recognised nor are the ones who are not up to the mark are punished. This is the gap which has to be bridged by NGOs like you and educate the rural children who are our future. If women get educated the entire family is educated, if a man gets educated it limits to himself, therefore women should be empowered for the society’s growth.
Ms L Rama Devi said, there is enormous talent in our children, what they need is an opportunity, if they get one, a raw stone can be cut into a diamond and that is where Yashoda Foundation has been making a mark. If we are educated we can rule the world, education can uplift and make a difference to a generation. Today, one should have basic education, but ultimately its our talent which sets us apart. Yashoda foundation is supporting children in honing their talents and helping them realize their potential. The concept of MASTI is very interesting, it is emphasising on innovation besides Music, Arts, Science, Technology; which encourages children to stretch their imagination. Today the demand is for problem solving skills and when you get exposed to such things as in MASTI, automatically creativity gets shaped in them. Innovation is the buzzword and has got intertwined in our lives. During COVID government school children got impacted the most, private school children could keep pace by embracing technology. It was Foundations like Yashoda which bridged the gap by coming to the rescue of government school children by partnering with companies like Microsoft. Going forward Digital Technologies will be your support, will be the asset, just leverage it.
In launching MASTI, we’re not just initiating a program; we’re igniting a movement to transform the lives of underprivileged children across India. Through holistic learning experiences in music, arts, science, technology, and innovation, we aim to unlock the vast potential of these young minds. It’s a step towards creating a future where every child can aspire to greatness, regardless of their background. Join us in this journey to nurture the next generation of leaders, innovators, and changemakers, says Santosh Kaveti, CEO, ProArch and Founder, Yashoda Foundationwered
About Yashoda Foundation
Established in 2007, Yashoda Foundation A CSR arm of ProArch is a not-for-profit organization that works to empower and develop marginalized and underprivileged communities with an unwavering commitment & unconditional support. The core mission of the Foundation is to provide holistic learning opportunities to underprivileged children.
The Foundation’s flagship program is called Disha (meaning “direction”). Disha focuses on providing unique, safe, and imaginative learning spaces for the children from Underprivileged communities called the “Community Learning Centers” as well as providing sponsorship to needy children. The Community Learning Centers (CLCs) focus on providing a well-rounded development by augmenting the children’s schooling and helping bridge any existing learning gaps to prepare them for higher education and future career. Thus, besides academics, the CLCs focus on broadening their exposure through life skills, career exploration, spoken English, computer skills as well as extracurricular activities- sports, reading, music, art, health, and experiential science workshops, etc.
Initiated as a remedial learning project for the children at risk of dropping out of the mainstream education system, the Community Learning Centre program has now developed as a comprehensive and holistic program for children to enable them to become responsible future citizens of the world. Having started with one pilot Community Learning Center (CLC) in a slum location in Hyderabad in the year 2014, gradually the program has expanded to 16 CLCs across twin cities of Hyderabad, Secunderabad and 3 other districts of Telangana state. The CLCs are linked to the nearest government schools for children’s mainstream formal education as well as leverage the space in the government schools for establishing the CLCs. Under its sponsorship program, the Foundation also extends sponsorship to children from different education backgrounds to enable them to pursue higher education.
To date, the Foundation has impacted the lives of 2100+ children and their families through our education initiatives. The Foundation also runs a feed the hungry initiative to distribute food to the needy. To date we have served 1,00,150+ meals.
About MASTI Centre
MASTI, a heartwarming initiative by Yashoda Foundation, is unlocking the potential of underprivileged children, providing them with a creative space to explore music, arts, science, technology, and innovation, paving the way for a brighter future. With access to facilities, mentors and coaching, these talented kids can unleash their creativity, dream big, develop skills, and make their mark on the world.
