Sunday, August 17, 2008

The Modern Story

this is old news to a bunch of you, but I just wanted to share it on a public forum as I must now get into fundraising / PR mode - I was recently lucky enough to secure a fellowship with "The Modern Story". The Modern Story (TMS) is a grassroots organization begun about a year ago by two recent college grads which focuses on teaching middle school children in India how to use such technology as still cameras, video cameras and video editing equipment in order to create digital stories about their lives and environments. it also attempts to teach the kids to think creatively and actively question their surroundings, thereby empowering themselves. i will be working in Andhra Pradesh in Southeast India, near Hyderabad. the program will be from October until January of this year. from now until i leave at the end of September, I must raise $2,500 so if anyone knows anyone in a position and with an interest in supporting such a venture please let me know. the program is very new and very grassroots - aside from the founding two members, it has had two other fellows. i will be a part of the third group to do work for the program. i apologize for the solicitous tone this post may have, but more than anything to do with my personal involvement in the program i think it's just an excellent thing to know about - please check out the website - http://themodernstory.wordpress.com/ - where you can find the videos made by the students as well as a detailed blog of each fellow's experience and lesson plans during their time in India. i will be posting on the Modern Story's blog thoroughly, just as the previous fellows have, during my time in India. i recommend checking out the videos in the media page - i enjoyed "Kings" and "Women and Education in India". and for anyone interested, i found the fellowship from browsing a database titled - http://www.idealist.org/ - which focuses on posting non profit jobs and volunteer work openings throughout the world. i know a lot of the people reading this already have some kind of future plan in place but if you know of anyone else looking for something give them the heads up and i'd love to answer any questions though i'm green and still have much to learn about the program.

3 comments:

Ms. Feldman said...

This reminds me of a documentary that came out a few years back, "Born Into Brothels." I definitely recommend it.

Also, if anyone of us would like to contribute to the $2,500, who do we make the check out to?

dave kutz said...

jess - if interested in donating, i will promptly send you the formal letter which provides info on the program and also tells you who to send cash / check to.

Ms. Feldman said...

Dave, I would love to help you out with a small contribution. Send me the stuff.