Sponsoring an Education

The Jakarta Post   |  Tue, 04/29/2008 3:39 PM  |  Center Piece

Tini is 16 years old and the youngest of 4 children.  Her father died when she was still a young child and her mother was left to support the family by taking in laundry.  Her mother is often ill and unable to work, so Tini’s oldest brother, who works as a construction laborer, is now the main breadwinner.  

They do not have to pay rent as they own the small house in Bekasi where they live, even though it is only made from sheets of woven bamboo with an earth floor.  

For a family like Tini’s education is often out of reach due to the cost of books, uniforms, transportation and various fees imposed by schools.  But Tini is one of the lucky ones and has received a scholarship since she was in grade 5 of elementary school through a charitable foundation.  Her sponsor is a British woman who used to live in Jakarta and now lives overseas. Tini is in her first year of vocational high school.  She hopes to continue to receive help from her sponsor until she graduates in two years.

Tini’s scholarship has made a huge difference in her life.  Without it she would have been forced to drop out of school at an early age and take up a menial low-paid occupation to help her family.  There are many more students like Tini who need help.  

Almost 20 percent of Indonesia’s school-aged children cannot afford to attend school as the costs involved are an intolerable burden upon low-income families.  Sponsorship allows such students to remain in school and gives them a chance for a better future.

There are several charitable organizations and foundations in Jakarta that channel scholarships for disadvantaged children and the costs involved are not great.   

Yayasan Emmanuel
Jl. Pangrango No 27A
Bogor
Tel: 0251 712 2479
Email: yayasan.emmanuel@bogor.indo.net.id
Website: http://yayasan-emmanual.creation-website.com
The Emmanuel Foundation is a not-for-profit social services NGO headquartered in Bogor.  It provides services and support to underprivileged, handicapped and malnourished children, as well as poverty-stricken and scavenger trash-site communities in Jakarta.  The foundation helps 5,500 children and individuals each month through 6 programs focusing on homes, education and community services.  The Educational Outreach program is currently keeping more than 1,700 children in school and a unique asset to the program is free weekly tutoring to the children in various strategic locations.  The goal of Yayasan Emmanuel is not simply to pay for tuition fees but to provide quality social support.

Yayasan Kampung Kids
Pejaten Barat II/Jl.Timbul No.28
South Jakarta
Phone: 719-4787, 0812-9540527
Email: cc@kampungkids.org, info@kampungkids.org
Website: http://www.kampungkids.org
Kampung Kids has a 3-phase program covering basic nutrition, education as well as health and hygiene.  Under the education program financial assistance is given to school-aged children who cannot attend public school due to the lack of family resources.  In addition tutoring classes is set up for older children (ages 7-12) who have never attended school and who are illiterate, in preparation for entering elementary school.

Yayasan Usaha Mulia
Foundation for Noble Work
Email: olvia@yum-irdn.org
Website: http://www.yum-irdn.org
For over thirty years the Foundation for Noble Work has been helping thousands of Indonesians struggling to survive the trauma of disease, malnutrition, abandonment, economic difficulties, lack of education/training and natural disasters.  There are a variety of ways you can make a dramatic improvement in the lives of some of the poorest people of Indonesia:
Sponsoring a child – Learning Center students, Children’s Village residents, government school program
Making a donation – Unlike large foundations which choose only to accept “general” donations, with the Foundation for Noble Work you can specify what you would like your donation to be used for.
Volunteering – contact the foundation to find out how you can help.

Yayasan Goodwill International
Jl. Pisang No. 27 RT 10/RW 11
Pasar Minggu
Tel/Fax: 780-714
Email: administrator@yayasan-goodwill.org, igoodwill@cbn.net.id
Website: www.yayasan-goodwill.org

Goodwill is a registered Indonesian charity which gives multi-year scholarships to the brightest and most needy future leaders.  Goodwill International’s mission is to provide financial assistance, training, care, resources and advice to young Indonesians and in doing so give them a chance to lead and serve their communities and their country.  The scholarship program has given over 300 disadvantaged, bright and motivated students the means to graduate from two of Indonesia’s leading public universities, the Bogor Agricultural Institute and the University of Indonesia.  

Goodwill scholarship winners are chosen by virtue of their need and merit.  It is the leadership training that makes a Goodwill scholarship different from others, and which past students all agree they found particularly valuable after leaving niversity.  Training modules include public speaking, CV writing, job searching, interviewing, team building, leadership styles, business English, etc.  Volunteers can become involved with the selection of students or the training program and, of course, many sponsors are needed to support the students. 

+ Marilyn Ardipradja

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