Education is a basic human right and a powerful tool for positive change. IF focuses on three subsets:
2) “Learning by Doing” ie Active Learning.
3) Turbocharging the Gifted/Talented.
IF believes in the simple idea that an individual is capable of learning most about something when he or she performs the task or activity. Examples of our programs in this area:
Not a pipe dream! “Under Graduate engineering students build Working Prototypes to address unmet societal needs. In just 6 weeks, and that too, Patentable!” This is what ‘Invention Factory’ is all about: an intensive 6-week summer program for 10 teams each with 2-3 UG engineering students (competitively selected).
Each team identifies an unmet societal need, designs a solution, builds a working prototype, “pitches” it, files a provisional patent application; then competes for “Best Inventions.” Two professors at Cooper Union (USA) started this annual program in 2013.
Our role: IF partnered with 3 other donors to bring the program to India in 2018. Indian students are mentored through this process by the two US founders, who are on-site in India supported by local faculty. In the words of those familiar with the US & Indian versions of the program: the Indian students are equal, if not a step above, their US peers!
The Indian program operates at two Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) campuses- Gandhinagar & Mumbai. Over three summers, 87 students have filed 44 provisional patents. It will eventually be scaled to multiple engineering schools. Read more about the program here http://initiatives.iitgn.ac.in/invent/
How to build classroom financial theory into real-life investing practice? Give MBA students the responsibility and accountability for investing real money backed by indepth research, while working in teams with experienced oversight. That’s the philosophy of the Asset management Practicum of the world-renowned Kellogg School of management of Northwestern University.
IF was one of the founding funders of this Practicum since its inception in 2007 and remains a contributor. IF’s contribution set up a separate corpus which is invested by students who enroll in the Practicum for a minimum of 2 quarters.
In this limited enrollment, credit based practicum students are responsible for 1) Analyzing individual investments, 2) making Asset-allocation decisions, and 3) Executing (trading, risk monitoring, and evaluating performance). Integral to the Practicum is a series of guest lectures from industry leaders. All this is in addition to tailored finance courses.
Learn more at https://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/asset-management-practicum.aspx
Issue: How can university learning be better suited for the real-life needs of Industry? Good professional schools are great at imparting hard, domain-specific, skills. Yet employers bemoan the lack of other ‘soft’ skills they deem essential for real-life success. Successful entrepreneurs echo the same sentiments.
Key soft skills short-changed in traditional university experience include: 1) Communication skills - written & oral, 2) Interpersonal skills - teamwork & leadership, 3) Critical thinking & Practical Finance.
Our role in helping with a solution: IF is partnering with two other donors (as part of a Maker Bhavan Foundation initiative) to set up CES - Center for Essential Skills. CES aims to complement the ‘hard (domain) skill’ focus of professional schools by offering key soft skills. CES will offer 10 world- class courses using an ‘active learning’ pedagogy known as “learn-by-using”. Content development is led by Dr Stephen Kosslyn, a former Dean of Harvard University. Following the enthusiastic response to pilots, the rollout of a more complete set of elective courses will be at IIT-Gandhinagar in Fall ‘23, followed by several other Indian universities.
Read more about the program here https://makerbhavanfoundation.org/programs/ces/
Issue: Engineering colleges teach theory in classrooms but there is insufficient opportunity for students to experiment on their own and cultivate a creative mindset.
A Solution: What if there was space where students could toy with ideas,tinker with tools, & work in multidisciplinary teams to build novel prototypes that convert concepts into tangible products? Tinkerers' Labs (TLs) are just that: state-of-the-art, student managed ‘makerspaces’, open 24/7, with faculty available for help where needed. TLs are the brainchild of the Maker Bhavan Foundation (MBF).
The host university provides the space for TLs, and covers operating expenses, while donors cover the cost of tools and desktop manufacturing equipment, including high-end 3-D printers, laser cutters etc. The TL ecosystem fosters a “culture of making” in Indian engineering colleges: students learn to enthusiastically get their hands dirty, gain self-confidence + 'hard' technical skills, & nurture a creative mindset from the experience.
Our role: IF is one of several donors to MBF for programs including TLs. Currently, there are 10 TLs across India (at 5 IITS, 2 BITS campuses, as well as 2 chemical-engineering specific ones). To date, 15,000K+ students have benefited, and TLs have spawned 6 start-ups. Get to know more about the lab at https://makerbhavanfoundation.org/programs/#tinkererslab
CfHE, located within IIT-Hyderabad, India has 2 objectives: 1) Train budding healthcare entrepreneurs via a heavily hands-on one-year post-graduate diploma program, 2) Incubate startups with enabling support funding (for technical supervision, mentorship, networking opportunities, & discounted managerial services such as office space; accounting, legal and intellectual property support).
IF is one of two founder-donors of CfHE. Since its founding CfHE has graduated over 45 fellows from the training program, incubated 12 startups, received an increasing amount of funding from external sources, and its graduates are pursuing several companies that have commercialized products or are on the verge of doing so. More information is available at https://cfhe.org.in/about-us/