Shadhika

Giving Tuesday 2020

November 24, 2020

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Our Theory of Change

Shadhika’s mission is to inspire a culture shift in India by ensuring every young woman is empowered to realize her full potential.

At the core of Shadhika’s theory of change is our investment in the potential of the girl to create a groundswell of change through a lifetime of action.

Put into practice, our theory of change relies on a model of support along the girl’s full continuum of development; investing in the full girl from adolescence to young adulthood. 

In India, a girl runs the highest risk of school dropout and early marriage during her adolescent years because secondary education is no longer compulsory, nor free. Through our Supports for Success grants, Shadhika partners with local women-led organizations to provide character and skills building, peer support, and leadership opportunities through community-based after-school programming.

For many young women, post-secondary education is cost-prohibitive, limiting access to higher paying jobs in the formal sector and thus dwarfing her ability to achieve economic independence–a key lever towards advancing gender equity. Through our competitive Scholarship program, Shadhika provides the financial support and supplemental tutoring in English and computer literacy that will ensure that each Scholar can successfully complete a college degree in the field of her own choosing. 

This holistic approach ensured that, in 2019, 100% of young women in our programs completed secondary school and 89% Shadhika Scholars graduated from college or university. 77% of those graduates received a job or an internship upon graduation.

Your Giving Tuesday Impact

On December 1, Giving Tuesday is a global effort to catalyze the generosity of people to affect maximum good in the world. For the occasion, Shadhika aims to raise $25,000 that will support one year of funding at one of our 5 partner sites, including 7 college scholarships and leadership development for 500 girls. 

More than ever, your financial support will be a lifeline for our young female leaders in India. Our goal to raise $25,000 will ensure that, despite economic hardship befalling their families, our young female leaders can access the necessary tutoring and support services to stay in school and that our Scholars can attend online college courses. 

Matching Funds

On Giving Tuesday, your donation will count as double thanks to the generosity of an anonymous donor who will match every dollar 1:1, up to $10,000. Do not miss the chance to leverage every dollar you give and double the impact of your gift!

Shadhika’s model of holistic support aims to address the hurdles that exist at critical stages of a girl’s development. With your support, the young women of Shadhika can escape the regressive effects of the pandemic on gender equity in India–including child marriage.

This year has reminded us that when we act together, we can have an outsized impact. So no donation is too small. Every dollar counts and it will count double during Giving Tuesday!

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