IYG - Youth Empowering Youth - Preparing Ahead: A Roadmap to Land the Right College - Part 1

submitted by Dhruv Jagan

India Youth group (IYG) organized a new series called Youth Empowering Youth to engage middle and high schoolers in the community about different aspects of college applications. The first event in this series took place on December 16th, 2023 at India Center. The panel discussion was entitled “ Preparing Ahead: A roadmap to land the right college”. The panel included five students at various stages in their collegiate career. Aryan Kale, Junior, Northeastern university, Anika Nath, Freshman, MIT, Swara Gurav, Freshman, Suffolk University, Dhriti Aiylam, Northeastern University and Arnav Mankad, Boston University shared their insights into the college application process. Topics discussed by the panel ranged from SAT and ACT test-taking, strategies, requirements, and the importance of extracurriculars to land your top college. For example, they shared what they think is a reasonable time to start thinking about college, as well as how many clubs and activities that were offered at their school helped them decide their major. Through these discussions, a general consensus arose: Start thinking about college during the beginning of your junior year, and try and experiment with many clubs at school to see which ones interest you. The panelists emphasized that doing something that is unique sets you apart from others. Additionally, how you display your dedication towards your courses and extracurricular activities will help you get a step closer to your dream college. In the Q&A session, both parents and kids got involved and learnt from the panelists tips and tricks to achieve admission into the college of your choice.

by Dhruv Jagan

IYG kicked off its first bonding event this year after the election on October 23rd. We met at West End Creamery, a locally-owned farm turned entertainment and reconnecting environment. It was a well-attended event, with a mix of both IYG and non-IYG members, spending time running around in circles in the corn maze, as well as struggling to move in the minuscule tricycles in the tricycle race. Some kids competed in West End Creamery’s 18-hole mini-golf course, while others enjoyed a few games of cornhole. After these activities, we all sat together for delicious ice cream and discussed our plans for upcoming new events, including our flagship event, IYG Showcase. We are looking forward to planning more details in our next IYG Meeting this Saturday, November 11th.

email to iygeb@iswonline.org for more info

 

IYG Elections on September 30th at 11 am -12 noon at India Center  

submitted by Shilpa Kulkarni & Usha Yadav,  IYG Co Advisors

Last date for kids to apply September 24, per email sent, may be extended to get more applications

Rules

There will be NO waterfall for President and Vice President, but there will be a waterfall for secretaries, project manager, and treasurer. This means that if you run for a secretary position and don’t get it you can re-run for project manager that same day.

On the meeting day all candidates will be required to give a speech on why they think they are a good fit for the position. There will be a series of anonymous voting. After the September meeting is over (around 12pm) the new elected EC will stay with the co-advisors for an additional hour to map out the year and outline their responsibilities, so if you plan to run please make sure you are free till 1:00pm on 9/30 because if you get elected you will be REQUIRED to stay.

Link to pictures

On June 18th the Indian Youth Group hosted a community picnic as part of their IYG Reboot initiative. The picnic was a huge success with over 90 attendees, both parents and kids. IYG was able to take advantage of the India Center by organizing games such as volleyball and pickleball outside along with board games and card games indoors. At the event IYG’s new co-advisors were introduced, Usha Yadav and Shilpa Kulkarni. They will be joining the team as adult members and all the IYG members are looking forward to working with them. The Indian Youth Group is excited to boost membership with future events like the picnic.

IYG is a non-profit community service group that fosters leadership skills in Indian Youth. We would love to have you as an addition to our group! In order for you to officially join, you will just need to send us a confirmation of your family’s ISW membership via email. You can check your membership status on our website: ISWOnline.org. Use the membership signup / renewal link at the top. If you have forgotten your password - there is a "forgot password" link where you can get a new one.

Once we have received a confirmation we will be able to provide you all the information you need for you to join IYG, including the form link. IYG meeting : Second Saturday of every month from 11:00-11:45 @India Center.T BD

For any general inquiries on joining, send an email to iygeb@iswonline.org

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If you would also like to receive IYG updates over text, you can text “@iygsec” to 81010

IYG Introduces New EC

On June 13th, the Indian Youth Group (IYG) held its very first virtual Election! Despite the pandemic, IYG worked diligently to hold a safe and fair election. We are very proud to announce the newly elected IYG 2020-2021 Executive Committee:

• President: Divya Raghunathan
• Vice President: Gaurav Jaisingh
• Co-Secretaries: Aryan Kale & Rishabh Makkar
• Treasurer: Rishab Parikh
• Project Manager: Arnav Mishra

Top Row: Advisors Mitali Biswas and Shubh Agrawal, Outgoing President Raunit Kohli 
Second Row: Outgoing Treasurer Avi Shah,Vice-President Gaurav Jaisingh, Outgoing Secretary Anjali Tanna 
Third Row: Project Manager Arnav Mishra, Treasurer Rishab Parikh, President Divya Raghunathan 
Third Row: Co-Secretaries Rishabh Makkar and Aryan Kale

ISW loves to say that we are the future of our community. I can say with full confidence that they are correct. Our members have proven themselves to be leaders in their community, providing hundreds of hours of service to people all around the Central Mass area. I have no doubt that our new EC will run this organization flawlessly. I am excited to see how they adapt to our new environment and I cannot wait to see what they do next. 

In my six years of IYG, I have grown tremendously and made life-long friends. From Lazer-Craze to Showcase India, IYG has been like my family. I would like to thank all the IYG advisors who have helped grow this organization to nearly three times the size of when I first joined: Tikoo Aunty, Poonam Aunty, Rajit Uncle, Mitali, and Shubh. I would also like to thank the ISW EC for being so supportive of us and being a guide for our success. Thanks also to every member of IYG, including all of those members in the class of 2020: we will be remembered as not only the quarantined class, but also the largest number of IYG members in a single class to date. 

I am honored to have been a part of this incredible organization, rising the ranks from member to President. As I step into the next stage of my life (on the other side of the country), I will carry with me the innumerable skills IYG has given me. The India Center will always be my home and I am thankful to be a part of this incredible community! 

Raunit Kohli

Outgoing IYG President

As we enter June and our 4th month in this pandemic, IYG is reminded of the many events we missed out on. During this time, IYG would have participated in the Boston Walk for Hunger and celebrated Holi with our Humrahi Group. Most importantly, IYG would’ve run our 2020 presentation of Showcase India! To be candid, the COVID-induced shock has been a bit harsh on our flagship event. After months of preparation- gathering choreographer information, mp3 files, making programs, and booking venues- it was admittedly quite disheartening for the IYG Executive Committee and members alike. Showcase India represents much more than just a show. It’s a symbol of community, of unity, of hard work and mostly, of ambition. However, we have learned to take this misfortune and learn from it. We have learned to realize that success did not lie in the event itself, but rather in the skills that our group has learned while working on it. We’ve been able to develop a positive outlook and learned to focus on the “journey” rather than the destination, as the journey holds more value.

Luckily, IYG has made sure that Covid-19 has not stopped its growth. We are excited to be holding our executive board elections at our virtual June meeting on Zoom. We look forward to seeing what our new EC will be doing! We also have a record number of seniors in IYG who have now graduated and are preparing for the next chapter in their lives!

For our members that aren’t graduating, the struggle has been equally challenging. The switch to online learning has been difficult. Every student has a different learning style- which can be targeted with various in classroom techniques. However, with this sudden switch to a single technique, teachers are forced to think outside the box with different ways to cater to each individual student on an online platform. IYG recognizes this struggle and would love to express their gratitude to all teachers in these trying times. For the students themselves? We all find it imperative to realize that these times are hard, and it truly is okay not to be okay. Prioritize your mental and physical health. Getting an English paper in 2 days late is worth saving yourself from having a panic attack. Several schools have opted to go Pass/Fail for this year’s second semester, allowing a lot more lenience on the student’s part. Take care of yourself. Sacrificing your health is not worth a good grade.

In these hard times it’s so important for our community to stick together. On behalf of IYG, we wish you all the best, and to stay healthy and happy. 

Raunit Kohli

IYG, President