Winter 2008: Case Study - Andhra Pradesh, India

15-year-old K. Elia is a student one of our Supplementary Education Centres in Vijayawada, India. His father left many years ago and his mother, a hospital cleaner, earns barely enough to support the family. Before attending our supplementary school Elia was a shy boy who struggled with his studies. He enrolled in our centre a few years ago where he was provided with nutrition supplements to help him regain his health and his tutor ensured he had additional support to enable him to catch up with his peers. Soon his confidence grew, his personality began to shine and his teacher’s praised his interest, enthusiasm and academic progress. 

His hard work was rewarded this year when he achieved a score of 561 out of 700 in his public examinations, the highest mark in his city. Our local partner, VMM, held a celebration evening to congratulate all the children who had taken the exams and gave special recognition to Elia. He has since been accepted to the Rajeev Gandhi EEE College and his place includes free lodging and board. Elia’s lifetime ambition is to become an engineer.