#RewindWithOIAA: Throwback With Barefoot College
Last year, for Namjoon’s birthday, ARMY voted for Education as a cause to support, with a special emphasis on providing access to needed supplies to students whose schooling has been impacted due to Covid 19.
In September 2020, One In An ARMY launched a 5-day flash fundraiser in support of Barefoot College.
Operating in 1,300 villages in 80 countries worldwide, Barefoot College’s focus cuts across several areas including the fields of education, water, skill development, women empowerment and electrification through solar power for the upliftment of rural people.
Through our fundraiser, ARMY assisted Barefoot College in India with their Digital Night Schools, which aim to make education more accessible for rural, remote, and underprivileged children with daytime obligations that prevent them from attending school during regular class hours.
In 5 days, 1,480 ARMY came together to raise $25,170. The sum would fund 125 technical devices, train 100 teachers, or set up nearly 3 Night Schools.
As we revisit all the organizations we have worked with in the past 12 months for our third anniversary, we decided to ask them a few questions. Let’s check out what Barefoot College has to say:
Updates On The Programs And New Developments
Our Education programme is constantly evolving and we have since added an even greater focus on gender into the curriculum we teach our students.
Organization’s Fund Allocation Plan
The funds from this campaign will continue to be allocated to the continuation and expansion of our Education programme, creating learning opportunities for children from the most marginalised rural communities. This essential work cannot be done without the support of groups like OIAA and people like those in ARMY.
Since we last worked together Barefoot College International has redoubled its commitment to further expanding as a global organisation to reach more communities in new countries.
Our mission is to increase economic mobility by making vocational and educational opportunities accessible to women and girls from the most marginalized communities around the world.
One of the most important elements of this work is to ensure that the next generation has sustainable access to education, giving them the opportunities that their parents and grandparents never had access to and empowering them to be the changemakers of the future.
The Impact Of Pandemic On The Organization’s Operations
The pandemic made it essential for Barefoot College International to pivot our programmes quickly and effectively, whilst ensuring minimal upheaval for those we support. This was key to keeping the children, especially girls in education.
As demonstrated through our last fundraiser, the Education programme adapted quickly to ensure seamless digital delivery for those with access to tablets, computers and phones, whilst maintaining essential offline support for those without. This ensured that the children and young people we work with weren’t missing out on their learning.
For the organisation as a whole, the safety of our beneficiaries has been paramount, and we have successfully been able to continue some in person training for Solar Mamas in our India and Zanzibar training centres.
We have continued essential community-led activity, providing health, maternity and social support to rural communities in India throughout the pandemic, and our Zanzibar training centre produced more than 200,000 masks for the people of Zanzibar.
Here are some recent articles about our pandemic response and our Education program:
https://www.barefootcollege.org/barefoot-is-dropping-dropout-rates/
https://www.barefootcollege.org/our-outstanding-covid-relief-effort-partnerships/
https://www.barefootcollege.org/championing-gender-equality-through-education/
https://www.barefootcollege.org/barefoot-teachers-speak-out-about-new-remote-learning/
BCI was also the very proud recipient of the WISE Award for our Enriche program:
https://www.barefootcollege.org/barefoot-college-is-a-wise-award-winner/
The Impact Of OIAA’s Campaign On The Organization
Our campaign with One In An Army was transformative for us, as it opened our eyes to the support of a whole new community of passionate individuals, who as a group are able to come together to create meaningful change for those who need it most. By raising more than $25,000 for Barefoot College International, OIAA and BTS ARMY have created opportunities for children who go through our Education program, by funding the training of teachers and the running of our schools.
This support means that our mission can continue, creating economic uplift for rural communities, furthering gender equality, reducing migration and protecting traditional ways of living. The money that OIAA has raised for us gives new hope and opportunities to children and young people, and creates the opportunity for us as an organisation to further expand our Education program in the future.
Do You Know BTS?
The knowledge of BTS was somewhat patchy throughout the organisation, with some being more aware than others, and a few going crazy with excitement when they heard about the project! However, since the campaign you can rest assured we are all huge fans! We are thankful for the inspiration that BTS give their followers, and incredibly grateful for the collective spirit, passion and commitment of ARMY, and all of that is created by BTS!
Support Barefoot College For OIAA’s Third Anniversary
- Visit the donation page created for the organization or scan the QR code on Barefoot College’s poster
Donation Page Link: https://www.classy.org/campaign/barefootwithnamjoon/c299572
- Donate any amount (a minimum of $1)
- Take a screenshot and submit it on our tracking form (hide any personal information).
- Share the campaign with your friends and family.
Follow the instructions and updates about our Throwback Campaign here.
We are completely aware that not everyone is able to contribute through a monetary donation, but your support, in any form, is significant to our campaign. For example, you can share our SNS posts to help increase the reach and visibility of the org amongst your followers. Find us on social media here: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Tumblr, Reddit, and Amino.
