Tag: teachers

Thankful For An Impactful 2021 And Aiming For More In 2022

While 2021 started off grimly in the throes of the pandemic, the situation slowly improved over the months and it was great to see most kids being able to attend school this fall. The year had its challenges, but we at Meemli are thrilled that we were able to continue executing on our mission to advance education equity.

 

Rising To The Challenge

In the second year of the pandemic, Meemli had to adjust to a new landscape:

• Students did not go to classrooms in most public schools until the fall, and schools and teachers were overwhelmed with distance learning transitioning to hybrid and in-person learning to provide students with the individual support they need – Meemli helped fill this gap! Meemli worked with nonprofit partners to help provide engaging learning programs to middle school students in underserved communities.
• While pandemic relief understandably attracted most of the  charitable funding, Meemli is thankful for :
  • The generous support from the community (and a grant from the State) that helped us continue to provide the programs.
  • For our small but great team of a few staff and volunteers, dedicated to our mission and sharing the work in delivering programs.
  • For the many volunteer mentors who continued to sign up to guide the students in these programs.
• With the support of our team, donors and community volunteers, Meemli was able to offer programs that engaged middle school students and advanced their learning. Our programs included:
  • An intro to computing and careers
  • A hands-on environmental science program where kids got to do experiments at home
  • Critical skill building in reading comprehension.
• All the programs we did this year were successful and popular with the students:
  • We were thrilled to learn that 100% of them would do another program with us!
  • It was equally important to learn that our mentors found the programs rewarding too and many have signed up to volunteer for other programs.

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“The best thing about the program was that I got to learn about technology and spend time with my mentor.”

“What I enjoyed the most was doing fun experiments at home.”

 “Thank you for running this awesome organization! I’m enjoying my time with my student and he’s doing great.”

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Planning To Grow

Meemli’s programs have proven to be successful and we are excited to continue to advance education equity in the next year too.

We hope to:

• Build capacity to expand our existing programs to serve more students
• Create new programs in other topics to support students’ academic goals
• Offer summer programs for students who typically miss out on summer enrichment

Our program enrollment has increased 100% each year since we were established in 2019, even with the 2020-21 pandemic challenges, and we hope to continue that trend. Of course it is only possible with the continued support of the community and corporate partners!

How You Can Help

Meemli relies on the power of the community to advance education equity – and that is each and everyone of you! There are many ways you can make a difference for Meemli from donating to volunteering as a mentor or sharing your business skills to help the Meemli team deliver programs. We hope you will include Meemli in your giving back plans – you may find our Founder/CEO Usha Sekar’s post on charitable giving helpful!

We are deeply grateful to all our well-wishers for supporting Meemli in so many ways in making an impact, and wish you all a happy holiday season!

 

2020 And Beyond: Working For Education Equity

In January of 2020, I wrote this post about how as a nonprofit Meemli was geared up to focus on our mission of improving equity in education. As the year winds down, I’m writing about what we were actually able to accomplish in this year of global disruption.

At the beginning of the year, COVID wasn’t on our horizon, but now it has markedly changed our lives and the educational landscape, with distance learning, hybrid learning and other options substituting for onsite, in-school education.

The closures due to COVID-19 and the resultant remote learning has been hard for most children (and their parents). But, the pandemic has disproportionately impacted low-income families with higher rates of infections, job loss, and food and shelter insecurity. When schools went virtual, the digital divide and educational inequities for their children became glaringly apparent. With reduced access to teachers and academic support, underserved students are likely to have a 30% or more learning loss this year.

What We Accomplished This Year

I’m so proud that Meemli’s small, dedicated team of mostly volunteers (and almost-volunteers) have stepped up to the challenge of helping over 200 underserved students with one-on-one academic support. As a nonprofit focused on education equity, I’m excited to report that we have made tremendous progress, even in this unquestionably difficult year:

• We partnered with nonprofits that serve low-income families and provided remote academic mentoring.

• We enabled teachers to engage students struggling with distance learning by giving them free use of our unique collaborative learning space.

• We offered topical programs during a tumultuous summer, including short courses on science (climate change) and reading with understanding (social justice) to engage students stuck at home.

• We bridged the pandemic isolation and the generation gap by connecting middle schoolers with retirees on Meemli’s safe platform to co-create mini-memoirs.

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“When the pandemic unexpectedly disconnected Sunday Friends from the youth we serve, Meemli helped us to start closing the gap. Through Meemli, we can ensure our kids receive the support and guidance they need as they navigate distance learning and home instability, flexibly interacting with mentors in a virtual, safe, and thought-provoking environment.

—Sunday Friends, a nonprofit that serves low-income, vulnerable families in San Jose, CA

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Looking Ahead

With continued demand for our offerings, we aim to scale to support ten times as many students and develop critical new programs in core subjects, including academic support in Algebra. Research shows that students who do not complete Algebra 1 have only a 20% chance of graduating from high school.

While many worthy organizations are focused on feeding and sheltering those in need, we believe that supporting the educational needs—and future success—of underserved students is also critical. And of course, we need the support of our sponsors and the community to make that possible.

What You Can Do

There are many ways you can make a difference.

1.  Donate.
   • Donations of any amount will have an impact with $25 helping enroll a student in a program and $50,000 going towards creating a new program. You can donate here.
   • Make your donation grow – donate through your company’s matching program for employee giving
   • Suggest that your company consider sponsoring a Meemli program for a local school.
2. Volunteer.
   • A lot of our programs rely on mentors to provide academic support. Volunteer to mentor a student (sign up here). You can make it more impactful by bringing in coworkers/friends and recommending your company or group sponsor a mentoring program in a local school.
   • Volunteering your communication, teaching, business or technical skills will help Meemli support more students (get in touch).
   • To truly achieve education equity every community has to do its part and Meemli is working hard to increase community engagement. Volunteer to start a mentoring program in a local school or youth organization that needs it (contact us to learn how).
3. Share.
   • Let others know what Meemli can do for students (or what they can do for students with Meemli). Use the share buttons on this post! Have ideas for Meemli? Send them to us – we’d love to hear from you!

Finally, heartfelt thanks to everyone who supported Meemli and the education cause – and also to everyone who helped, in any way they can, the millions who need support with food, shelter and so much more in these difficult times. We look forward to working together to make next year easier and better!

 

Rising To The Challenge Of The COVID-19 Impact On Education

Well, 2020 definitely turned out to be more surprising and harsher than any of us could have imagined. The pandemic has disrupted lives globally, and here in the first month of the second half of the year, we, especially in the US, are not out of the woods yet. The COVID-19 impact on education has been tough to handle, for kids, parents, educators and administrators, with most schools closed and distance learning not being as smooth as they hoped. But as always, with challenges come opportunities to make a difference and we are rising to the challenge!

We at Meemli (also dealing with the challenges of staying safe during the pandemic), know we are uniquely positioned to lessen the negative  COVID-19 impact on education as we already have solutions in place. We have been working with accessible high quality student-engaged online learning for years, a little ahead of our time, but now we’re working hard to bring that experience to as many students as we can.

 

What We Do

Meemli knows that “learning is easier with a little help” and to improve education equity we make sure we can offer it to all students wherever they are – which we accomplish by using technology, the expertise of educators and the power of community.

• • We have an online learning space (platform) that safely and easily connects students to those who can help them – teachers and mentors.
  • Our platform was built with the specific purpose of supporting the interactions of young (middle to high school students) in a safe, private manner to deliver engaging and effective learning experiences.
  • This platform allows us to create and offer courses and programs connecting students to high quality teachers and trusted mentors to fill various learning needs.

What We Have Done So Far

Since schools shut down this spring, we have been using our online learning platform and related services to help in the following ways:

• • Remote Schooling. Provided middle school students with a highly engaging distance learning experience in science, and their teacher an easier and more effective way to deliver live teaching.
  • Mentoring. Connected young students with limited knowledge of computers to trusted mentors who guide them in a program providing a introduction to computing and careers.
  • Summer – Reading. Offered a free summer reading program (in support of Black Lives Matter) guiding middle school students through understanding the need for racial justice through reading a related book and small group discussions led by an experienced educator.
  • Summer – Science. Offered a summer science program helping middle schoolers enjoy a fun, collaborative learning experience on how climate change affects the oceans around us led by an innovative science educator.
  • Summer – Community. Provided an opportunity to young middle school students to sharpen their writing skills as well as build empathy and understanding by connecting with isolated retirees to reduce their loneliness, hear their stories and share a memoir.

How We Can Help Now

Distance learning is here to stay. Even when schools are back to being fully onsite, there are benefits to connect students in learning together with the support of various helpful sources. As we are facing the opening of the schools for the 2020-2021 school year, we can leverage our online learning platform to help in these meaningful and impactful ways:

• • For teachers looking to improve student engagement for distance learning:
    • The free use of our platform, with training and support, in providing a highly interactive learning space which can add to existing tools.
  • For schools and nonprofits working to provide supplemental academic support to their students:
    • Free access to trusted adults in professional careers who connect remotely to students and offer guidance and support in their schoolwork or learning enrichment.
  • For parents of students needing extra academic support:
    • One-on-one (or optional small group) coaching in core subjects.

Why Choose Us

Bringing about equity in education is a big task, and during the pandemic, the inequalities have become even more marked with the dependence on remote schooling and the lack of resources in low-income families. There are many solution options to fit different needs and preferences.

Meemli’s unique position:

• • Experienced in interactive, collaborative online learning for middle and high school students
  • Offers platform for teachers to enhance distance learning, or in-class collaboration
  • Helps students who need some extra support through its supplemental programs
  • Partners with organizations to provide trusted mentoring programs to students
  • Includes high quality student-centered educators and team
  • Is a nonprofit focused on education equity offering many free and affordable solutions

If you would like to know more about any of these options to help lessen Covid’s negative impact on education or just need some help for a middle/high school student and want to know what we can do, just drop us a line here – we will respond!

Meemli is committed to doing the best we can to share our tools, expertise and services to help as many students as we can to during the pandemic and beyond . Reach out to us and help us help you!

An Empowering Model For Our Mission

Meemli’s mission is to improve education equity by bringing great learning experiences to all students, especially the ones that have limited exposure to them. We do this by using the power of community, the expertise of educators and the convenience of technology. We put them all together to deliver courses, mentoring programs and more. We have been very successful so far in delighting students, inspiring educators and satisfying parents who have had experience with Meemli offerings.

But for our mission to flourish and reach more students and bring more impact, we needed to scale. We realized that our business model and mission would be better aligned if we transitioned to a nonprofit (you can read why here).

As of last year we are a nonprofit – and now our business model and mission are both in harmony! As we are going through that transition, it is almost like being a start up all over again (with lots of paperwork!), but thankfully quite a bit easier. Because we already have the foundation that we know works, and we have people who have worked with us and who enjoy the mission and their work tremendously, we are definitely better poised to scale effectively to reach and help a lot more students than before – and deliver on our goal to improve education equity.

 

So what will we be doing now?

• We will continue to provide the additional help students need to develop core academic skills especially in middle school and early high school grades.
• We will continue to help students with reading, writing, math, science and other subjects as needed.
• In addition, we are in a position to include enrichment topics to help develop the whole child and plan to add them to our offerings.
• Most importantly, as a nonprofit, we are able to partner with corporations and other businesses, as well as other nonprofits, in delivering our impact. In particular, this enables us to bring the impactful experience of connecting with trusted mentors in a safe environment to more students, wherever they live or go to school.

How We Help

Here are all the ways we can help students:

1. • For Schools And teachers

We offer programs to supplement the work that schools and teachers are already doing to grow the capacity of the students in reading, writing, math etc. We can customize what we offer based on the needs of the school or even a specific subject for the teacher.

1. • For After- And Outside-Of-School Programs

We offer supplemental programs, especially online mentoring programs, with trusted mentors who are excited to provide mentoring without having to deal with inconvenient commutes.

1. • For Corporate Social Responsibility

We work with corporate partners to develop specialized online mentoring programs that actively engage their employees in mentoring students wherever they are, with the ease of flexible schedules and without the stresses of commuting.

1. • For The Community

We can help community organizations, or anyone or any group in the community, to leverage our platform and programs to provide tangible support to their local schools.

1. • For Parents And Students

Additionally, our educators offer coaching, either one-on-one or in small groups, for students who need some extra support in core academic subjects.

A lot of these programs are free of cost or at very low cost, due to generous sponsorships – once again our business model and mission serve the same goals!

How Can You Help?

It is important that each of us figures out how we can help improve education equity in this country as it affects us, our children and future generations (see this post where I detail why). So while there are many, many worthy and important causes that we should all support, we urge each of you to consider how you could also support education to the level or extent you can (here are some ideas on  how you can engage).

Our team at Meemli is doing what we do so we can help improve education equity. We cannot do this without your help though! Here are some ways you can help us help the education cause:

• • By donating to support our programs
  • By volunteering as a mentor
  • By volunteering your business, technical or educator skills

 

If you would like to to know more about our work, please sign up for a newsletter (in the footer). Please also check out this page to learn more about how organizations and individuals can work with Meemli to help improve equity in education.

Thank you for your support in getting us to where we are. The entire Meemli team is looking forward to working with you to make a difference for our students’ success and would love to hear your thoughts – leave us a comment!

2020 Vision To Start The New Year!

Sorry, we couldn’t pass on the pun!

New Year’s Eve is almost here and for many, this means making lists of resolutions to keep in 2020. This year, before making a long to-do list, start with a vision of what you want the year to be instead.

Prioritize

Take some time to reflect over the past year(s) and think about what you’d like the new year to be like. What changes would you like to see and what would you keep the same?

There are many areas to consider: health, family, friends, academics and extra-curriculars (for students), hobbies and skill-building for the future and so on. Hot tip: focus on the areas that are most important to you and where you want to see change. Getting more active and healthy may be more critical than joining a book club so you can read more books (though that might be easier!).

As you prioritize, ideally you will find that you are focusing on just a few areas – and that’s a good thing. Starting the year with an overlong to-do list is daunting and it is probably not likely you will get them all done by year-end, so stick to the high-priority items that you know will make the biggest impact for you.

Visualize

Visualization is a common technique to give form for concepts and ideas. Along with writing down what you want to do, having visuals makes them easier to remember too. We’re recommend this simple, tangible and actionable approach.

• • Write down your priorities. For example, it may be “learn to play guitar”, “get more active and healthy” and “get better at writing”.
  • For each priority, find (or draw, which might be even more fun) an image – someone playing a guitar, someone playing basketball, a book you admire.
  • Put these images in your journal so you can get a quick visual reminder of what you are aiming to do this year.

By the way, if you’re not already keeping a journal, now’s a good time to start one. Even if you don’t write in it everyday, it makes it much easier to track your progress.

Itemize

Now that you have a “vision” of what you want to do based on your priorities, you can now get to the next level of detail and create specific goals.

For example, you might want to aim for a goal of running a 5K race if getting more active is part of your vision. It is important that the goals are achievable within the time-frame of the year and are within your reach. They could stretch your abilities a bit as long as they are doable. Once you have a goal identified for each of your priorities, write them down in your journal!

For both adults and kids, research has shown that all these steps will make it more likely that the goals are achieved, so put in the time – for yourself, and while guiding your younger child.

Historically, people have been making new year’s resolutions for centuries. A new year is a new beginning and brings with it tremendous possibilities. If you’re short on time and busy with end-of-year festivities, here’s our very short guide to help your reflect and refresh yourself now – and maybe work on the goals later!

Best wishes for the new year and the new decade in 2020 from the gang at Meemli!

Enjoy The End Of The School Year

(Enjoy this updated re-post of one of our favorites!)

Now that you’re well into the second half of the school year and summer break is not too far off (though it feels that way!), do you feel you’re getting into a rut? Is school not that interesting anymore? Maybe it is time to step back and think about what you want and work out your own personal plan for building for the future while still enjoying the last few weeks.

On top of honing study skills and getting serious about college, we recommend spending a little effort to get more value from the time spent at school with your peers – it is fun and helpful too!

 

There’s no one-size-fits all high school experience; everyone is different. But there are some things every student can do to enrich that experience. The key is that each student should make their own plan and do it their way to get more from school and enjoy the process!

Get Extra From Extracurriculars

You’d have heard it a zillion times by now “Take advantage of your school’s extracurricular activities to boost your college application and resume”. Sure, a better college application is one of the key benefits you get from participating in various clubs and sports.

But don’t do it just for padding your list of accomplishments. (And oh by the way, admissions officers can see through just-checking-off-a-box kind of engagement.)  Get involved in what interests you and you would enjoy – whether it is for the fun peer group or the challenge and excitement of the activity itself.

At this point, you’re probably already in clubs and sports – if you’re not, go ahead and see if you can still join, it is better late than never! – so now’s a good time to check if you’re getting the most out of these activities. Are you learning new things that you’re excited about? Are you meeting the kind of people you want hang out with? If you feel that your experience has become routine and not so interesting, you still have time to make changes. See if you can get more by changing your role, getting more involved, or if need be, switching to something else.

Get More From Your Teachers

Is there one class you enjoy far beyond the rest? Perhaps it’s the subject matter that interests you, and you want to study it more in college. Chances are, you like that teacher too, as they’ve taken the time to make learning about the subject something you really care about.

Go beyond asking about homework and tests and really talk to some of your favorite teachers. They can be a source of helpful ideas on everything from which major may suit you best in college to which events you should attend to feed your passion, whether it is in drama or math. Of course they can help with your college or job recommendations too, but getting to know great teachers and staying in touch can be an enriching experience in your life.

Get More From Your Friendships

By now you might have a core set of friends at school. First, take the time to deepen the friendships you already have. Seek out the people you want to spend time with, and make it a point to go do some fun activities with them in between your study sessions. School is one of the few places where you’ll have the time and access to friends that you need to build great friendships that could stand the test of going off to different colleges/cities/careers in the future.

Apart from your core group, now’s also the time to get to know more of your peers. Build your network! It is not a cold, calculated move to help your future job prospects, but another way to enrich your life. The more people you know, the more diverse your experiences and the more you learn about the world we live in. If nothing else, you’re less likely to be bored!

Get More From Your Community

Actually, it is all about “get more from your community by giving more of yourself to it”!

Community involvement is also another favorite “must-do” to put in your college application. But, once again, it’s not just about the application, it’s what you get from it. Do you see a pattern here? Often, what you do to enrich your life and expand your horizons end up being good for your college applications and resumes!

Working for a cause you care about with a group of passionate, like-minded people is a joy into itself. And you don’t have to wait for any specific time to do it. There are opportunities throughout the year, to suit any particular interest and time availability. You can do anything from organize a beach or park cleanup to creating quilts or blankets for the homeless. Opportunities abound, and you get to pick what you like to make a difference!

Get More As A Senior

If you’re a senior, you’re already counting down the weeks to graduation and seriously trying to keep off senioritis. Still, there’s plenty more you can get from the last few months of school!

As your high school life is winding down, now’s the time to get the most out of everything you can, and the list above works well for seniors too. Get to know the teachers you care about and make sure you can connect with them after school. Spend more time with friends who may be heading off in different directions, and connect with more people you’d like to stay in touch with (after all, that’s what social media is for). Have fun with your clubs and sports (and if you can’t, don’t waste too much time on them). And, make connections in your community too. If you’re volunteering in nonprofits, schools etc., get to know the leaders and staff there. You may want to work there during summers, or you could recommend others who might. If you care about something or someone, figure out a way to keep them in your life.

Schools are not just about academics. There’s so much for you to enjoy, and there are people for you to enjoy it with. Take the time to savor it all and most of all, take time to make and nurture your connections!

And one final tip, smiles make the days and weeks go by faster ????

Have a tip to share? Leave a reply!

Getting The Most Out Of School

Now that you’re well into the second half of the school year and summer break is not too far off (though it seems that way!), do you feel you’re getting into a rut? Maybe it is time to step back and think about what you want and work out your own personal plan for getting the most out of school before the break.

On top of building study skills and getting serious about college, we recommend spending some time on simple ways to get the most out of your school year and the time spent with your peers – and having fun while you do that, too!

 

 

There’s no one-size-fits all high school experience; everyone is different. But there are some things every student can do to enrich that experience. The key is that each student should make their own plan and do it their way to get the maximum benefit – and enjoy the process!

Get the Most from Your Teachers

Is there one class you enjoy far beyond the rest? Perhaps it’s the subject matter that interests you, and you want to study it more in college. Chances are, you like that teacher too, as they’ve taken the time to make learning about the subject something you really care about.

Go beyond asking about homework and tests and really talk to some of your favorite teachers. They can be a source of helpful ideas on everything from which major may suit you best in college to which events you should attend to feed your passion, whether it is in drama or math. Of course they can help with your college or job recommendations too, but getting to know great teachers and staying in touch can be an enriching experience in your life.

Get extra from extracurriculars

You’d have heard it a zillion times by now “Take advantage of your school’s extracurricular activities to boost your college application and resume”. Sure, a better college application is one of the key benefits you get from participating in various clubs and sports.

But don’t do it just for padding your list of accomplishments. (And oh by the way, admissions officers can see through just-checking-off-a-box kind of engagement.)  Get involved in what interests you and you would enjoy – whether it is for the fun peer group or the challenge and excitement of the activity itself.

At this point, you’re probably already in clubs and sports – if you’re not, go ahead and see if you can still join, it is better late than never! – so now’s a good time to check if you’re getting the most out of these activities. Are you learning new things that you’re excited about? Are you meeting the kind of people you want hang out with? If you feel that your experience has become routine and not so interesting, you still have time to make changes. See if you can get more by changing your role, getting more involved, or if need be, switching to something else.

Get more from your friendships

By now you might have a core set of friends at school. First, take the time to deepen the friendships you already have. Seek out the people you want to spend time with, and make it a point to go do some fun activities with them in between your study sessions. School is one of the few places where you’ll have the time and access to friends that you need to build great friendships that could stand the test of going off to different colleges/cities/careers in the future.

Apart from your core group, now’s also the time to get to know more of your peers. Build your network! It is not a cold, calculated move to help your future job prospects, but another way to enrich your life. The more people you know, the more diverse your experiences and the more you learn about the world we live in. If nothing else, you’re less likely to be bored!

Get more from your community

Actually, it is all about “get more from your community by giving more of yourself to it”!

Community involvement is also another favorite “must-do” to put in your college application. But, once again, it’s not just about the application, it’s what you get from it. Do you see a pattern here? Often, what you do to enrich your life and expand your horizons end up being good for your college applications and resumes!

Working for a cause you care about with a group of passionate, like-minded people is a joy into itself. And you don’t have to wait for any specific time to do it. There are opportunities throughout the year, to suit any particular interest and time availability. You can do anything from organize a beach or park cleanup to creating quilts or blankets for the homeless. Opportunities abound, and you get to pick what you like to make a difference!

Get more as a senior

If you’re a senior, you’re already counting down the weeks to graduation and seriously trying to keep off senioritis. Still, there’s plenty more you can get from the last few months of school!

As your high school life is winding down, now’s the time to get the most out of everything you can, and the list above works well for seniors too. Get to know the teachers you care about and make sure you can connect with them after school. Spend more time with friends who may be heading off in different directions, and connect with more people you’d like to stay in touch with (after all, that’s what social media is for). Have fun with your clubs and sports (and if you can’t, don’t waste too much time on them). And, make connections in your community too. If you’re volunteering in nonprofits, schools etc., get to know the leaders and staff there. You may want to work there during summers, or you could recommend others who might. If you care about something or someone, figure out a way to keep them in your life.

Schools are not just about academics. They offer so much for you to enjoy, and there are people for you to enjoy it with. Take the time to savor it all! And one final tip, smiling more helps!

What are your thoughts on how to get the most out of school? Leave a reply to share with us!