Score Foundation is a New Delhi-based not for profit organisation working towards empowering people with visual impairment.
SCOREBOARD April - June 2016
To New Beginnings!
The month of July is a witness to endings as well as beginnings. The college admission season has come to a close and the new academic year is about to begin. Students are brimming with excitement as they anticipate a new phase in their lives. However, this hope and positivity is the result of a long and drawn-out journey. Young people today work very hard, vying for a limited number of good educational opportunities.
Education performs the vital task of inspiring, empowerment and including. A substantial number of Indian citizens are suffering from blindness and visual impairment. The government of India estimates the figure to be 5.03 million (2011 Census) and WHO estimates the figure to be 62 million. Regardless, each and every one of them would benefit from the life-changing perspectives imparted by education.
We, at the Score Foundation, are delighted to note that visually impaired students have performed exceptionally well in many recently-held examinations. This is despite the fact that these students start their journey on an unequal footing, facing a host of systemic and personal challenges. It is with great pride that we bring to you the stories of some of our courageous friends, achievers in the true sense of the word.
Pratyush Kaushal scored 95 per cent in his class 12 board examinations. Mahesh Narasimhan topped the executive MBA programme and was declared a gold medallist at the prestigious Faculty of Management Studies, University of Delhi. The stories of these two young stalwarts, as well as others, whose lives were positively impacted through their engagement with us are shared further below in the newsletter.
Mahesh Narasimhan at his alma mater, FMS, University of Delhi
At Score Foundation, we believe in the power of networks and the great human collective. When our stakeholders, friends, partner organisations and well-wishers come together, amazing things happen. A pool of expertise, knowledge and information is created that enables us to empower a greater number of people than ever before. This edition of Scoreboard, our quarterly published newsletter, is intended to be a beacon of hope, inspiration and guidance for the visually impaired, their loved ones and all the dedicated people working in this life-changing domain. We do hope you like this carefully crafted labour of love.
The Eyeway Helpdesk: Support, Counselling, and Guidance
The Eyeway helpdesk, which was officially launched in December of 2015, has been hard at work to address queries and counsel visually impaired people on a wide range of topics. The toll-free number, 1800-300-20469 can be called from Monday to Friday from 10am to 5pm. Between the months of April and June 2016, there have been 2,062 calls to the toll-free number. A majority of the queries we receive are regarding referrals, government schemes and provisions, counselling and assistive technology.
As a network, Eyeway aims to have a presence in every state of India by 2018. We look forward to engaging its stakeholders in the process of achieving this goal. We have had the great joy of being witness to and a part of, many uplifting journeys.
Heart-Warming Stories
- Pratyush Kaushal, an 18 year old student from Delhi started experiencing loss of vision when he was in class 11. He approached Score Foundation before the CBSE Class 12 examinations in 2016 for counselling and advice. His concern pertained to a rule according to which the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) does not allow a scribe from the same stream as the student taking the exam.
We helped Pratyush’s family connect and engage with the office of the Chief Commissioner for persons with Disabilities (CCPD), who encouraged the CBSE to accommodate his concern. They complied and he was eventually allowed to have a scribe from his stream. This is very beneficial as terminologies, figures, and diagrams are better understood by a scribe who is familiar with the subjects. Pratyush prepared rigorously and went on to score a remarkable 95 per cent in the class 12 examinations.
Pratyush Kaushal being facilitated for his academic performance
- Mahesh Narasimhan, a 35 year old resident of Delhi having 10 per cent vision got in touch with the Score Foundation in 2014. He had been called for an interview for the Executive MBA programme at the prestigious Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), University of Delhi. Despite having cleared the written aptitude test and having performed well in the interview, he was not offered admission. The misinterpretation of the Persons with Disabilities Act (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 emerged as a stumbling block in this situation.
As per the Act, at least 3 per cent reservation should be offered to persons with disabilities. We encouraged Mahesh to stand up for his legal rights and engage with the Office of the Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities (CCPD) in this regard. Mahesh made a representation to the CCPD, which then took appropriate action by sharing a letter with the Registrar of the University of Delhi. He was finally granted admission to FMS in August, 2014. The cherry on top of the cake is that he also topped the entire programme and received the gold medal.
- Priyanka (name changed), a 26 year old resident of New Delhi approached the Eyeway help-desk in 2013. She has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Delhi. She started losing vision later in life and in 2010, became 100 per cent blind. Suffering from social anxiety, she was dependent on her parents for each and every thing.
Repeated motivation from our side finally encouraged her to enrol for a computer training programme with the National Association for the Blind (NAB), R.K. Puram. She successfully completed the programme this year. The under-confident Priyanka has transformed into a confident and entrepreneurial young lady. We would like to thank Dominic (Eyeway, Score Foundation) for sharing this story.
- Satish (name changed) from Tumkur, Karnataka approached the Eyeway desk for assistance a few months ago. He is blind as well as physically challenged. He had joined a Mysore-based NGO for a computer training programme but had to leave it after two months as he was severely injured. The NGO promised him that he could return to the programme after his recovery. However, in a disheartening turn of events, they refused to admit him again. Satish had left his belongings, along with original certificates, in the hostel. To make matters worse, the NGO refused to return these to him.
We contacted the NGO, acting on the behalf of Satish. After our counselor's persistent efforts, the NGO finally returned his belongings. We would like to thank Nandini (Eyeway, Enable India) for sharing this story.
Inspiration Corner: Interviews and Articles
A long-time volunteer associated with the Score Foundation, Ms Pramila Komanduri interviewed Christine Ha, the first ever blind contestant and winner of the third season of MasterChef, the American TV competition show for amateur cooks. She won $250,000 and the opportunity to write and publish her first cookbook. Lesser known is the fact that she is also a writer and gets inspiration for her stories from life experience. To know more about her amazing journey, please click to read the interview here.
Photo credit: Julie Soefer Photography
We are also delighted to bring out a new series on caring for the developmental needs of infants and children with visual impairment or blindness. Parents, educators and medical professionals will find the strategies and resources shared by expert Supriya Das, who has significant experience in the areas of visual impairment, deaf-blindness and multiple disabilities to be especially instructive. We start off with an introductory piece from her that looks into the need for early child intervention for infants with disabilities. To read the full article, click here.
Credit: 'The Hug' by Tom Woodward (Flickr) , Creative Commons Licence
Events, Engagements, and Networking
Score Foundation’s CEO, Mr George Abraham was invited by Gujarat National Law University (GNLU), Centre for Law and Society, Gandhinagar, to deliver a lecture on 22nd April 2016. He spoke on ‘Disability Rights: Challenges and Opportunities’ and interacted with the audience to sensitize them about disability.
Binni Kumari, Alok Kumar, and Devashish Bhargav were invited by the Vision Enhancement Centre of Shroff Charity Eye Hospital on 23rd April 2016, for a day event “Youth Support Meet of Visually Challenged Persons”, in New Delhi. They shared their experiences of living with blindness and their own stories of overcoming barriers.
Mr George Abraham was invited by the National Council of Churches in India to give a presentation on disability in Jabalpur on 30th April 2016. He delivered a talk to religious leaders, key stakeholders, and influencers in shaping people’s perceptions of disability. It is important to make religious leaders a part of the conversation as they contribute significantly to building and changing perspectives in society.
On 15th May 2016, the Eyeway team in Bengaluru participated in the TCS World 10K run. The opportunity to create awareness and inclusion for people with multiple disabilities was a huge success.
On 11th June 2016, Mr George Abraham took a session on communication skills development with a group of 29 visually impaired girls. This was part of a six-week long intensive training programme organised by AICB (All India Confederation of the Blind) New Delhi.
Eyeway’s counsellors interacted with representatives from Bookshare, an accessible online library for people with print disabilities at the Score Foundation office in Delhi on 13th June 2016. They were briefed on the categories of material and accessibility options available, to enable them to better share these features with clients.
Shruti Pushkarna, Communications Manager, Score Foundation attended a conclave organized by Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) India, sponsored by UPS Foundation, in New Delhi on 23rd June 2016. The main premise of the conclave was to discuss ways of strengthening partnerships between NGOs and the corporate sector.
Akanksha Sharma, Communications Executive, Score Foundation attended a workshop organised by Google India on 27th June 2016. The focus of the workshop was to impart training to Not for Profit Organisations (NPOs) on using Google Grants.
Show our Social Media some Love
Eyeway’s Facebook page is growing at a fast pace. Currently 13,059 unique individuals ‘like’ it. It is worth mentioning here that these numbers have been achieved organically, without any paid ads or promotion. We are extremely appreciative of our online community, and the interest they take in the content that we post. We share resources, stories, videos, and news and latest developments. To check out our Facebook page please click here.
In order to stay updated about Score Foundation’s organisational events and activities, connect with us on Facebook here. We also share inspiring quotes on this platform, designed in-house on a regular basis. Twitter is a space through which we connect with relevant stakeholders in the domain of empowering visually impaired people. We engage with media, policymakers, and supporters. To be a part of the conversation, follow our account here.
Stay Informed through WhatsApp
The Eyeway WhatsApp group shares alerts on job vacancies, news, events and training activities. In the last quarter, about 200 relevant alerts have been sent out. You can subscribe to the group by sending a message to +91-9968329329. 598 people are currently enjoying this free service.
Get Published With Us
We welcome interesting, relevant and well- researched posts by guest writers. You are ideally knowledgeable about living life with blindness or possess a unique perspective on it. You have domain expertise and are engaged with the world of the visually impaired in a meaningful capacity. If you or someone you know is interested in contributing pieces or simply having a discussion on proposed ideas, please write to us at content@eyeway.org.
Crowd-sourcing Information
If you would like to share any relevant information that may be useful to persons with visual impairment, please send it over to us at content@eyeway.org. We are always looking to expand and enrich our knowledge base.
Our Success on Ketto
Ketto is a crowd-funding platform through which people and organisations can raise funds for a cause that they are passionate about. Mr George Abraham, CEO of Score Foundation ran a campaign on Ketto entitled ‘To Be Winners’, which began on 8th April 2016 and ended on 31st May 2016. The key objective of the campaign was to raise the seed fund for a proposed project with blind and visually impaired children.
The idea is to introduce the process of skill development early in life. We believe that blind children should have dreams and goals. They need to see value in education and recognize the role it plays along with technology, in equipping them with the necessary skills and attitudes in independently achieving their desired goals. Our new endeavour aims to build a module that will attempt to add these elements into the education curriculum of schools. We thank all the wonderful people who have made contributions.
Contributions
The work of Score Foundation is possible with the support of grants and donations from our supporters. These include organizations as well as individuals. All donations to Score Foundation are eligible for tax exemption under Section 80G of the Income Tax Act.
The amazing people at Rang De are facilitating online contributions for us. To donate using a credit card, debit card or your bank account, please click here. Please feel free to give whatever amount you are personally comfortable with. For us, every little bit counts. For donating by cheque or for donating from outside India please click here.
Welcome Note
Shruti Pushkarna, Communications Manager, Akanksha Sharma, Communications Executive and Poonam Baisla, Help-desk Counsellor, have recently joined the Score Foundation. We wish them a warm welcome.
Special Thanks
The Score Foundation would like to thank its interns, Johan Abraham and Tanya Chhabra for their hard work and wonderful contribution to the organisation. We wish them the best of luck for their future ahead.
Score Foundation
17/107, LGF
Vikram Vihar
Lajpat Nagar-04
New Delhi-110024
