1983 Batch News - Vinod Krishnan's Spanking Offer!

We need to be the change, we want to see happen.
We are the leaders, we have been waiting for.

-Gandhiji

Last year, I was one among many international Investment Advisors that Goldman Sachs invited to India for routing possible investments to India. I was the only Indian among my group of 15 (although there was another American of Indian origin) and my chest would have blown up with swelled pride, when I sat through each of the presentations that we were taken to, through Delhi, Bangalore & Mumbai, at the simple fact that I am an Indian. We met with the Finance Minister, the Civil Aviation Minister, Chief Economic Advisor, Banking & Capital Markets Secretaries, CEOs of Maruti, Bharti, HDFC, Infosys, Wipro, Biocon, Reliance, Kotak Mahindra, etc.

The theme was very clear. India is currently poised to become the 3rd major power on earth, behind China & the US by the year 2050. (Source : Goldman Sachs BRICs Emerging Markets Report (Brazil, Russia, India, China : BRIC). India has it in her, the immense natural wealth, resourcefulness, intelligence and simply put the young population that would make her one of the G3 (if there is a G7 by 2050).

The new challenge

However, as a non-resident, when I travel around Kerala and other parts of India, it inadvertently becomes evident that we're facing new challenges:

• Our students, not withstanding their economic & cultural backgrounds, are more diverse in every respect: more students who opt for professional education other than the traditional medical studies & engineering (taking into account defence services by our SSKZM students): academia, business-process outsourcing, art & theatre, bio-technology, commerce to even sports

• Our students are growing in a fast paced world of digital content and are less motivated by traditional means. While these students seem to take to new technology naturally, our schools struggle with the new opportunities and challenges of computer technology
  Interestingly, only very few schools like ours (although subliminal : as the objective is to send students to the defence services) have counseling services. Most of the good schools I have visited did not have counselors.

If you look at the developed countries of the world most schools do have internship coordinators and high-school/college counselors. Many integrate community services. Nearly all utilize some form of advisory. Advisors meet with parents, listen to personal problems, discuss current events, map out individual educational plans, ensure that all students develop post high school plans, take college admissions tests, and apply to colleges. Services traditionally offered by school counselors are distributed across its staff. All adults take responsibility for student success.

Life-long Value for Students (Poll choice)

I must confess that I am one among the few who voted for this option on the Poll posted by Sasi on our group site. Once I did that, I began to wonder what that would be. Unni’s, Joshy’s, Rajmohan’s, Sanu’s and finally Sunil’s suggestions got me to think of a counseling center, founded & funded by our batch.

Vinod Vasudevan’s offer to send the money, Sasi’s reaction on tax avoidance and his offer to meet with Sanil Kumar (CA) and Shabu’s suggestion to open a bank account prompted me to think on what I can offer.

As a few of you might know, I am a wealth management advisor to one of the prominent Saudi high-net worth families. We manage a billion-dollar family office which comprises of 4 major portfolios that invests in all asset-classes around the world. One of these portfolios is humanitarian in its function. We disburse all income from this portfolio to build hospitals, dialysis & diabetes centers, fund education etc.

Since this fund would function in perpetuity, we have followed either the Trust route or the Foundation route in setting up the guidelines of managing the principal monies invested and the resultant incomes. Needless to say, that these are watertight structures that would deliver the eventual goals of the Trust/Foundation without bearing the burden of tax.

Therefore, as I am sure Sanil would advise Sasi such, a Trust or a Foundation that offers Students’ Counseling would be a possibility to look at.

Students’ Counseling Foundation

High expectations for all students are making Teaching a team, rather than an individual, event. The need to build powerful sustained relationships with students makes Counseling a team, rather than an individual, sport. The enormous need for counseling means that counselors need to enroll, equip, and inspire teachers to help meet the need by acting as a staff developer, curriculum developer, and a resource developer.

If your thoughts match with mine and if a poll on this idea comes up with absolute support, we could develop this idea to a full-fledged plan and all of us could work towards the correspondent steps.

Foundation

• Beliefs and Philosophy

• Mission

• Domains:
  - Academic Development
      --Standards-Based Education Phase
   -Career Development
      --Vocational Education Phase

• Personal/Social Development
  -Humanistic Development Phase
  -Comprehensive Developmental Program Phase

Our batch has one of the most diverse set of professionals (from defence services, medicine, engineering, academia, technology, bio-chemical to extractive industry experts) and we all could contribute to the cause.

Funding

In investment business, when a new idea is proposed the promoter of the idea needs to demonstrate action along with his words; i.e. put his own money for promoting the idea. I would try and live up (God willing!!) to my words by offering Rupees Three Lakhs in phased stages:

• Rupees One Lakh to launch the foundation

• One lakh each, every year from 2008 for 2 years, if the certain milestones/targets we set for the performance of the foundation are met by the administrators (including the OBA & School authorities) of the foundation.

I hope I have not proposed something outrageous. If the idea doesn’t appeal to any one please feel free to eliminate it. Should it look good, let us work on it further.

Kind regards.

Vinod Krishnan
1365
 

Do not forget to see the pictures of 83 batch in 2005! Pics 1, Pics 2, Pics 3
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