[Assam] [Frgraduates-list] Helping the poor& IEP meet at DC notes

Thu Mar 30 18:16:30 PST 2006

umesh sharma <jaipurschool at yahoo.com> wrote:   Date: Fri, 31 Mar 2006 03:12:33 +0100 (BST)
From: umesh sharma <jaipurschool at yahoo.com>
To: frgraduates-list at gse.harvard.edu
Subject: [Frgraduates-list] Helping the poor& IEP meet at DC notes

Hi all fellow IEPers --- across the world and esp. those making headlines in HGSE news recently and around the world.

  A small comment about the DC meet of current IEP students and alums. I was a sort of gate crasher who arrived at the end of the meet -straight from work. I did not have even the address since I had not planned to attend myself -except the name Hilton hotel at Chrystal city metro stop. Some of my batch mates were already providing guidance to aspiring graduates. 

  It was heartening to note that some students are already having loads of experience in development and education at places such as AED - a resource others can use. 

  Since I reached at the end of the meet I do not know what advice my fellow 2005 graduated gave - there were none from any other batch though. A senior from Intl Ed program 1995 batch w as indeed present working with Nat. Peace Corps Asso.. I missed Ms Perlo. Audrey M. and Jacky -of our batch and are graduating this year I had met at the National Press Club meet - for all HGSE students who had come for career days in DC. 

  Since I am on an Internatioanl student visa hailing from a poor country (India - Per capita GDP only $450 per year - compared to USA's $30,000) my advice was limited to two issues - US citizens seeking a job at UNESCO , Paris -- in which US is extremely under represented -since it joined it only in 2002. The last date in June 30th of each year for the Young Professionals program. Faryal Khan ( fkhan at unesco.org I think ) Ed.D. '05 can give better guidance since she has been working there for over ten years. Through her contacts I got the info about US citizen-IEP grads having much better chance --unlike ta World Bank or UNICEF - in which USA might be over represented. Ofcourse one needs to know French - unlike me. 

   IEP grads on student visa  
  Second, was the real reason I decided to attend the meet - a split second decision I made just before  seeking board a bus home from Wheaton Metro train/bus station. Earlier in the day I received phone calls at a day care center in DC bearing good news about a contractor agreeing to sponsor me for a H-1B visa - so that I can continue to work in USA after my student visa expires in June this year. That fellow had responded one month after I had contacted them . Ofcourse they would take a percentage from my paycheck and I would have to pay the $2400 visa and lawyer fees. Details about this --esp useful for intl students intending to work in US http://jaipurschool.bihu.in/entry.php?u=jaipurschool&e_id=472

  Helping the poor countries: 

  my situation this year : Though this year has been a checkered one for me financially and in employment - (for the first time in my life this week I would be working three different employers on a part time basis - working with school students ranging from pre-school (in a day care program) to tutoring after school at an elementary school and  SAT tutoring on Sundays) --- it has made me realize why for-profit MNCs  are atleast as much likely to improve the situation in developing as Intl NGOs . Intl NGOs want to develop resources for other countries but do not actively seek to hire foreign workers in their home offices citing  visa problems -as I witnessed during my own visit to DC last year during Career Days. That attitude suggests that  an application would be favorably considered not just on merit but on the criterion whether that person is already eligible to work in USA (or UK or wherever that NGO is HQed). A person from a poor foreign country would thus always be at a loss
 (unless hailing from their home country's elite having foreign connections/networks) 

  NGOs- I think that those who wish to truly help poor countries must make substantial efforts to ensure that job seekers from such countries are given special consideration in non-profit jobs in developed countries. During course readings at IEP (and comments by a certain US based  guest faculty at IEP employed in an Intl NGO) made me realize the unequal relationship between development professionals from North and South. Since in a non-profit environment everyone is expected to be an idealist those poor country nationals seeking jobs in rich countries -in NGOs - are looked upon as profit seekers by many employers- thats my perception.

   I think it is wrong view - though personal gain or Bantham's utility maximization (in Micro economic terms) - drives every human action. I believe that by actively supporting poor country nationals to work in rich country based NGOs - such NGOs can help improve the skill levels and thus human resource of these countries.

  Learning from Indian experience of upliftment of its downtrodden (Dalits)

  I'm sure everyone must have known about India's Mahatma Gandhi whose non violent struggle got India its independence. To some atleast it might be known that he worked tirelessly for the removal of untouchability and lived nearly all his adult life in only those secluded neighborhoods outside  city limits (of any Indian city or twon or village)  where the untouch ables were allowed to live. He gave them a new name - Harijans (Children of God). He hailed from an upper caste (Business) though had been ex-communicated for traveling overseas to get a law degree from London in 1880s (sea travel then considered bad among most Hindus). Untouchability is a crime in India since Independence and Dalits (downtrodden)  have been 50% reservation in govt jobs and all educational institutions (incl India's elite IITs and IIms).

  However, with the rise of the Dalits in many spheres including politics --critcism about Mahatma Gandhi rose. You may be surprised to note that it was some of  the Dalit leaders themselves who criticised him - one even said (a former female Chief Minister or her mentor I think ) that s/he would go to his memorial in Delhi and hit it with shoes (US President paid homage there early this month) .  My personal experince has been Dalits in general dislike upper caste people's (th eir former and current oppressors)  efforts to make them stand on an equal footing. They want to be self reliant on their own. 

  Paradox/ catch 22:
  The most self less effort a reformer can make is to make herself redundant -as Prof. Reimers concluded in one of his classes on UN bodies such as WB, UNDP etc . 

  One aspect is to be able to sacrifice the well being of one's near and dear one's (in monetary esp) by being ready to offer one's resources -incl jobs and house and wealth - to the downtrodden. Though some may say that it is not a zero sum game - to help others need not mean oneself go down. However, it is matter of attitude. If one is ready to sacrifice one's interests then only one can even dwell on the issue of taking on the criticisms of those who mean so much to us - and take sides with the downtrodden. Instead of seeking to help one's upper caste brother or nephew get a job or contract  - try to pass on the job info to a suitable candidate from downtrodden (Dalit) groups - needs tremendous will power. Only such a reformer can truly earn the respect of those whom s/he seeks to help. 

  Inference and suggestion: In that sense I would suggest that IEP grads working in DC or other US location to actively seek to make their superiors about how easy for Harvard IEP grads to get work visa (H-1B)  to work in USA -if their NGO is ready to sponsor them. Perhaps no Harvard grad/student has ever been refused a US visa for work or study if otherwise eligible.
   Thus promoting recruitment policy reform within their own organizations. Many believe that reform should start from within. 

  I may reiterate that the current perception in Western non-profits is that it is not only costly to sponsor visas to foreign workers but they might be bound to keep them on rolls for ever --which is just not the case. And  workers hailing  from poor countries will gain valuable skills and resources  (incl. networks with UN, World bank, human right organizations, Western media  etc and access to donors in the West). 

  Any comments?

  Umesh

Umesh Sharma
5121 Lackawanna ST
College Park, MD 20740

1-202-215-4328 [Cell Phone]

Ed.M. - International Education Policy
Harvard Graduate School of Education,
Harvard University,
Class of 2005     
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Umesh Sharma
5121 Lackawanna ST
College Park, MD 20740

 1-202-215-4328 [Cell Phone]

Ed.M. - International Education Policy
Harvard Graduate School of Education,
Harvard University,
Class of 2005

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