Poverty

Poverty affects all nations

The Definition

Poverty By Definition

“Fundamentally, poverty is a denial of choices and opportunities, a violation of human dignity. It means a lack of basic capacity to participate effectively in society. It means not having enough to feed and clothe a family, not having a school or clinic to go to, not having the land on which to grow one’s food or a job to earn one’s living, not having access to credit. It means insecurity, powerlessness, and exclusion of individuals, households, and communities. It means susceptibility to violence, and it often implies living on marginal or fragile environments, without access to clean water or sanitation.” — United Nations

Types of Poverty

Historically, poverty has been defined based on income and an ability to meet basic standards of living. Over the years different countries have defined poverty based on their own traditions and ideologies. This expansion has grown to include multi-dimensional factors which include:

Lack of Income & Resources to Ensure Sustainable Livelihoods

Ill Health

Homelessness & Inadequate Housing

Hunger and Malnutrition

Limited or Lack of Access to Education

Unsafe Environments

Social Discrimination and Exclusion

Our View

The women and children we are educating and empowering face a combination of these factors, which is why we support this multi-dimensional definition of poverty. We believe that education and vocational training can help put them on a new path and break the cycle of poverty they have been forced into.

The Facts

Knowing the facts is the first step to making meaningful changes in the world. 

Approximately 297,000 children under five die every year from diarrhoeal diseases due to poor sanitation, poor hygiene, or unsafe drinking water.

Malnutrition is the leading cause of poor health and death around the world. Globally, 1 in 9 people is hungry or undernourished.

It’s estimated that, because of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent global recession, poverty rates will increase for the first time since 1990.

Global poverty lines are used to measure the financial dimension of poverty. The thresholds of $1.90, $3.20, and $5.50 per day represent different standards for poverty around the world. People living on $1.90 per day are considered to live in extreme poverty.

Neglect is the most common form of child abuse, followed by physical abuse, sexual abuse, and psychological abuse. Half of the 736 million people living in extreme poverty globally live in five countries: India, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, and Bangladesh.

Resources for students and families

Programs to lend a helping hand


SNAP Program

SNAP provides nutrition benefits to supplement the food budget of needy families so they can purchase healthy food and move towards self-sufficiency.

Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)

The WIC Program aims to safeguard the health of low-income women, infants, and children up to age 5 who are at nutrition risk by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating, and referrals to health care.

The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)

CHIP provides low-cost health coverage to children in families that earn too much money to qualify for Medicaid. In some states, CHIP covers pregnant women. Each state offers CHIP coverage, and works closely with its state Medicaid program.

Public Housing

Public housing was established to provide decent and safe rental housing for eligible low-income families, the elderly, and persons with disabilities.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program is designed to help needy families achieve self-sufficiency. Programs include childcare assistance, promoting job preparation, and work assistance.

The School Project

We believe English education has the power to break the cycle of injustice and lack of opportunity in a family’s life and give a child a chance in the ever-growing, modern South Asia and world.

Therefore, we educate our children in a high-quality, English-medium school. One where English is the primary language used during instruction.

Our school provides:

  • Local teachers
  • International board and influence
  • Computer training
  • Extracurricular activities (sports, dance, music)
  • Counseling
  • Life skills training (cooking, agriculture)

In addition, we provide on-campus, safe-housing; known as a hostel. This includes:

  • House moms that truly care for our children
  • Nutritional, warm, tasty meals and snacks
  • All clothing and school needs provided for
  • Medical care
  • Study time and play time
  • Safety and security

We strongly believe in working together to make a difference. It takes many voices to speak into one person’s life. We welcome teams, especially with international persons, to love on our children, to teach them new things, to give our children exposure to the “outside” world, and to practice their English-speaking. 

We understand that the child will have a decision to make once they graduate. Will they return to the life they saw when they were a little child? Or, do they take everything they have been given, a changed destiny, and go change other destinies? Our dream is that through their years at our school and home, these children will take prominent jobs in society and change the world for the good. We are committed to their safety even as they transition into a dignified profession in the real world.

“When I grow up, I want to be a doctor so that I can help other people like the doctor did for my mom.” – Student, grade 6

Night Program

On any given night the babies of sex workers are exposed to an unimaginable amount of atrocities and dangers. Often these little ones are physically and verbally abused, drugged to keep quiet through the night, left to wander the streets alone, or left lying next to their mother as she takes in client after client. These children are some of the most vulnerable. 

In partnership with a trusted organization, we have started a night shelter for these precious babies under the age of five. This night care provides:

  • A safe place to sleep 
  • An open place to play 
  • A clean place to bathe 
  • A nutritious meal to eat

Having this night care shelter also provides the opportunity to connect with more women in the red-light areas. The more women we connect with allows us to hear more of their needs and desires and hopefully provide a solution to change their destiny. 

We are in no way in support of what these women do every night. However, we care for the child who is otherwise left alone in their most vulnerable state. We care for the child that is forgotten. We care for the child that did not choose this life. 

Our hope is that through this night care and through the relationships built, the mothers will want to send their children to our residential school. 

Beauty Program

Vocational Training-

We believe vocational training can ignite forgotten dreams and give the opportunity for a bright future with a dignified career. One injustice we work with is human trafficking and sexual slavery. Many women are stuck in this trade because of illegal debt, while many others are stuck because of their limited, to no, education. Vocational training empowers these women to fight for their future. They too have a right to education.

Our beauty program launched in response to many women’s interest in this skill. They spoke, we listened. They dreamed, we responded.

This training includes:

  • Intro to Beauty Course
    • Beauty (facials, nail care)
    • Haircutting
    • Makeup
    • Life skills
  • Advanced Training Course
    • Haircutting
    • Hair color
    • Texture services
    • Life skills
“I love school. This school is different. When I come here, I feel at peace. It feels like family.” ~2019 Student