What does the ripple effect of empowerment look like? For organisations that work with communities, youth leadership is both the outcome and the strategy for driving intergenerational change. Our partner organisation, Chaitanya Kul, which works in Uttar Pradesh on alternative schooling, shares an inspiring story of how a young leader from the community brought meaningful change to children’s education in her area:
‘What does it take to achieve 100% parent participation in a government school Parent Teacher Meeting (PTM)?
For Pragati, a Sparsh Fellow and youth leader working at a Government Composite School, in Eastern UP, it took empathy, persistence and a deep belief that every child deserves to be seen, valued and celebrated.
During the last academic session, while teaching Class 5, Pragati identified several gaps that affected the quality of the learning environment. One challenge stood out. Parents had very little involvement in their children’s education, making it difficult to build a strong partnership between the school and families.
After the annual examinations, Pragati proposed organising a PTM to discuss students’ progress and strengthen engagement with parents. Almost everyone around her discouraged the idea. She was told that parents never attended PTMs in government schools and that investing time and effort into organising one would only lead to disappointment.
Rather than accepting this assumption, Pragati decided to understand the community’s perspective. During her regular home visits, she spoke with parents individually and listened to their experiences. She realised that families were not indifferent to their children’s education. Instead, they felt that conventional PTMs offered little value and did not give them a meaningful reason to attend.
With this understanding, Pragati redesigned the entire experience. She personally invited every family and informed them that report cards would be handed over during the meeting. More importantly, she used her home visits to build trust, appreciate each child’s strengths and encourage parents to become active participants in their children’s learning journey.
She also transformed the PTM into a celebration of every child. Instead of recognising only the highest academic performers, she ensured that every student received an award highlighting a unique strength. Children were recognised for qualities such as beautiful handwriting, kindness, discipline, creativity, sportsmanship, problem-solving and perseverance. Every child had the opportunity to stand proudly before their parents and be celebrated for who they were, not only for their examination scores.
The impact was remarkable. The PTM achieved 100% parent participation, creating an atmosphere of pride, encouragement and shared responsibility between families and the school. Parents who had never attended a school meeting before became active participants in conversations about their children’s education.
What makes this story even more inspiring is that there was no budget for gifts or awards. Pragati purchased every gift using her own fellowship stipend and carefully wrapped each one herself because she believed that every child deserved a moment of recognition. Her actions demonstrated that meaningful change does not always require large resources. It often begins with compassion, creativity and the willingness to go beyond what is expected.
At Chaitanya Kul, we believe sustainable educational change is built through leaders like Pragati. By empowering young changemakers to understand their communities, challenge long-held assumptions and design thoughtful solutions, we help strengthen government schools from within. These are not one-time interventions. They are investments in stronger relationships, greater community ownership and learning environments where every child has the opportunity to thrive.
FRC’s support makes this possible. It enables us to identify, mentor and nurture more young leaders who are transforming schools through trust, innovation and community engagement. Together, we are building an education system where every child is valued, every parent feels welcomed and every school becomes a place where meaningful, lasting change can flourish.’
Note from FRC
Our partner, Chaitanya Kul works to advance alternative schooling and nurture youth leadership within communities in UP. Their mission is to empower future generations with wisdom, mindfulness, compassion, and competence, while sowing the seeds of generational thinking through holistic learning.
This partnership with Chaitanya Kul reflects a shared commitment to reimagining education, as their work closely aligns with our Reimagining Education focus area. By investing in young leaders alongside community-led education, Chaitanya Kul is helping build local leadership that can sustain change across generations. Their progress reinforces our belief that investing in community-based organisations is essential to creating lasting, meaningful change for children and young people who are too often left on the margins.
Find Chaitanya Kul on the web:
Website: www.chaitanyakul.in
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChaitanyaKul2018
Linkedin: in.linkedin.com/company/chaitanyakul
YouTube www.youtube.com/@chaitanyakul2018
Instagram: www.instagram.com/chaitanyakul2018
