The Mumbai/New York Photo Project: Education Heroes

Mumbai and New York may both be the financial capitals of their respective countries and home to vibrant economies, but the cities have struggled since their birth with persistent social inequity.

Poor children in particular often struggle to get decent education and care, despite the presence of world-class educational institutes in both cities. In the seventh edition of the Mumbai/ New York photo project, Nisha Sondhe documented individuals and institutions working to improve the lives of children from all backgrounds.

Founded in 1989 by Wendy Kopp, Teach for America, which places college graduates and young professionals as teachers for two years in under-resourced schools, has reached over 3 million children in America. Teach for India, founded in 2008, adapted the American model and places teachers in Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Hyderabad and Chennai.

Zafar Bhatri, 28, who teaches at the Elia Sarwat High School and Junior College in Mumbai, said that after he entered his classroom, he quickly realized how far behind the students were and how little they understood. “They are sitting in a Grade 2 classroom, but, on an average, are academically at a lower kindergarten level, meaning three years lower than where they should be,” he said.

Over the past year, he said, he has watched some of his students improve dramatically, to the point where they can do math at their age level and even write stories.

In Mumbai, the Sahaara Charitable Society is a nonprofit started by a group of citizens to provide services ranging from education to health care to people from lower-income backgrounds. As part of the Sahaara Charitable Society, Project Pratham works to break the cycle of poverty by providing education, food and medical care to over 500 children in slums across Mumbai.

Many organizations go beyond basic education to provide holistic support. In New York, the Girls Educational and Mentoring Service, or GEMS, focuses on girls and young women between the ages of 12 to 24 who were sexually abused, trafficked or worked as commercial sex workers. The organization was founded in 1998 by Rachel Lloyd, who was sexually exploited as a teenager. The organization works to enable young women to leave the commercial sex industry by providing them with support and access to education.

Founded in New York in 1998, Girls Write Now provides mentoring for girls and young women interested in writing. Through a program of tutoring, workshops, readings and portfolio guidance, the organization helps young women from New York City’s public high schools to develop their writing styles, explore careers in professional writing as well as make healthy choices outside of school.

The organization has met with incredible success: while 40 percent of New York City high school students fail to graduate on time, 100 percent of the mentees in the program graduate on time and attend college.

Economic and social pressures make it difficult for many children in Mumbai to stay in school and complete their education. The Iskcon Food Relief Foundation attempts to address this problem by providing meals to children who attend school. The foundation provides 12,000 meals each day from 24 kitchen centers across 10 states in India.