Singapore Tamil Youth Conference 2016 Toolkit Toolkit Final as of 17082016 | Page 40

Topic of Interest : How can we further enhance SINDA Youth Club ’ s efforts in engaging youth in Volunteer Efforts ?
CASE STUDY : SINDA Youth Club and SINDA Youth Leaders Seminar
Focus of SINDA
• SINDA ' s vision is to " build a strong and vibrant Singaporean Indian community "
• In this process , SINDA ' s mission is to build a " well-educated , resilient and confident community of Indians " who can contribute positively to a multi-racial Singapore . ( from SINDA website )
SINDA Youth Club ( SYC )
• Launched officially in 2010 , SYC is managed by a young and vibrant team of professionals and the SYC Secretariat .
• The main objectives of SYC are to engage and nurture Indian youths to achieve their full potential .
• Subsequently , platforms are created to enable Indian youths to mutually support each other in their endeavours . Furthermore , SYC will provide youths with the access to a network of mentors and role models .
SINDA Youth Leaders Seminar ( SYLS )
Some of the Programmes currently conducted by SYC
• SINDA Young Leaders Programme ( SYLP )
• SYLP is an annual programme that seeks to empower aspiring Indian youths to engage in community service and leadership activities in Singapore and overseas .
• Selected participants will undergo a six-month training programme before embarking on local or overseas community involvement programmes .
• SINDA Youth Leaders Seminar ( SYLS )
• SYLS is a platform for Indian students from tertiary institutions to explore issues confronting the community , engage with distinguished individuals and engage in service-learning projects .
• Distinguished Speakers Series ( DSS )
• DSS is an annual event specifically for tertiary students and young working professionals to interact with prominent individuals in the community- Ministers , former Members of Parliament , Chairpersons of successful Multinational Corporations ( MNCs ).
Strengths
Areas for Improvement
• Participation of Indians from different kinds of tertiary educational • Although there is participation of youths from institutions ( Junior Colleges , Polytechnics , Institutes of Technical different tertiary institutions , there must be a Education ). stronger focus to attract participants from
• Provides Indian youths the opportunity to mingle with Polytechnics and ITEs . members of their ethnic community .
• Due to the decentralised system of ITEs , it is
• From a cohort of 50 youths in 2011 , the number has steadily harder to establish regular tie-ups with students grown to more than 150 youths in 2016 . through Indian Cultural Societies .
• This is dueto the inclusive culture in SYLS . According to Jeremy • However , even this situation has been improving Aruldoss ( Vice-Chairman of SYC ), it does not matter which with the introduction of the ITE Leadership " institution you are from or even your GPA or grades , butwhat Programme ( ITELP ) and other initiatives . matters is people with bright and ambitious ideas , and passion to serve collectively ".
• Exposure of youths to issues confronting the Indian community .
• Gives youths an opportunity to understand the needs of the Indian community and directly be engaged in a unique experiential component .
• Service learning where youths are brought to the heartlands to visit elderly and underprivileged households to distribute household items etcetera .
• Furthermore , in 2013 Design Thinking has been introduced to help youths apply tools for deeper understanding of the community ' s needs , problems and brainstorm for high impact solutions .
• In 2015 , a Hackathon was introduced to challenge students to ideate on workable solutions for the community ' s problems .
• Networking opportunities with leaders and prominent individuals in the Indian community .
• Proper follow-up is required to encourage at least a segment of SYLS participants to be involved with SINDA activities in the long-run .
• Nevertheless , to clarify , the main objective of SYLS is not to create a sustainable pipeline of volunteers .
• Also , as Jeremy Aruldoss ( Vice-Chairman of SYC ) stated , " commitment is relative and any time taken to volunteer is important ."
• SYLS is probably the last time some of these youths interact with prominent individuals or role models from the Indian community .
• Mentors , role models and community leaders could make a more conscious effort to engage with youths and start an informal mentorship programme .
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