Achieving Together

I always felt that when I would have a name for an organization or school that I want to start, I would take it as a sign that it was the right time to start. I came across this name in a meeting in June, when teachers were brainstorming what the classroom rules should be. I had to write this email to my team to share with them why this name is what I want. So here goes...

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Dear All,

I guess when I was pushing for Achieve Together, I should have shared with you all why it resonates with me so much.

Like S says, it emphasizes achievement and that might not be such a great thing, but this is how I see it.

Achievement could be academic, in terms of scores or a child writing an exemplary essay on some scientific concept or a child getting a national or international scholarship for high scores in an exam. It could be a child giving a speech on the history of India or them graduating from a course.

Achievement could be a student who is probably the weakest in studies winning a gold medal in a hundred meter running race or a student winning a drawing competition in school. It could mean a student peer working with another to explain for days on end how to do something and the child finally getting it. It could mean a simple science project on germination of seeds that grows into a massive tree at the school gate, and bearing fruits.

Achievement could mean running to get into a train that was just going to move, it could mean securing admission into a college, making the best rotis ever, speaking up for the first time in class, winning as a team, and improving bit by bit.

And achievement could also mean us building a world class school then another and then some more until we realize that there is no need for any more schools. It could mean our teachers transforming our children, it would mean engineering a world class vocational education curriculum and also helping parents realize the importance of girl children's welfare. It could mean for us securing funds, a naysayer to believe in us and to watch our own kids help us in sustaining our schools.

The focus is on doing all this together. Achievement is not a bad thing, it's just a realization or completion of what one set out to do, as I see it. The idea is not to get caught up on the traditional definitions of words but to create our own.

It's what I have been thinking for so long about us, we are here to change the world- not be a part of it.

I hope you all consider Achieve Together as a fit name for our dreams.

Thanks,