Houston, TX (October 14, 2024): Sewa International hosted a virtual conference titled "Education Summit 2024" on October 5, 2024, drawing over 160 participants. The summit sought to address immigrant and refugee students' challenges in U.S. schools and bridge the education gap by supporting marginalized communities.

Sewa runs ASPIRE – a comprehensive program that provides Math, English, Arts, and enrichment activities for students in grades K-6. Initiated in 2013 in partnership with AmeriCorps, ASPIRE has expanded to multiple locations. Anjana Bhadri, Sewa's Regional Project Manager, spoke about the program and its features.

Rakhi Israni, Sewa's Vice President of Government Relations, moderated a panel with Julie Sugarman, Associate Director for K-12 Education Research at MPI's National Center, Dr. Piyush Agarwal, Educationist, and Carole Juarez, Program Manager, AmeriCorps, discussing the challenges immigrant students face. Julie Sugarman noted that 25 percent of U.S. school-age children are from immigrant families, with lower graduation rates that improve over time. She stressed the need for equal access to education, highlighting disparities between states.

Dr. Piyush Agarwal urged integrating immigrant students into the education system and shared lessons from the 1998 Cuban influx, where strategies like educator training and bilingual materials proved effective.
Carole Juarez discussed the Aspire Program, where AmeriCorps members help students with limited English proficiency, addressing academic and emotional needs.

The second panel discussion opened with a yoga session led by Sridevi, a yoga instructor who has offered transformative yoga programs in universities and corporations.

Sudha Prabanandan, the moderator, introduced panelists Brittany, an 8th-grade student, Krishnan Balasubramaniam, a Sewa donor, and Victor Fisher, a teacher.

Brittany shared how the Aspire program helped her improve academically, raising her grades from C's and D's to A's and B's, highlighting its positive impact on her immigrant family. Victor Fisher discussed his experience working with at-risk children, noting how Aspire's individualized attention boosts student engagement and test scores. Krishnan Balasubramaniam, a dedicated Sewa donor, emphasized the importance of donor engagement, financial transparency, and Sewa's measurable success in addressing educational inequality.

In his concluding remarks, Prof. Anurag Mairal from Stanford University emphasized the critical role of education and innovation, noting that over a quarter of U.S. children lack adequate education, jeopardizing their futures. He highlighted the link between social determinants of health and education in underserved communities. Prof. Mairal praised the diverse stakeholders, including policymakers and educators, stressing the need for relationship-based learning environments. He observed that the challenges stem not from students' abilities but from their access to resources and sense of belonging.

Sewa International’s Education Summit Seeks to Bridge Education Gap