OPEN is partnering with IGNITE to provide Engineering and Vocational Polytechnic education to deserving poor students. IGNITE selects these students from lists of poor students with excellent board exam marks; these lists are provided by the school managements. IGNITE visits these students' homes to verify that the students are indeed needy, and monitors their progress through the diploma. IGNITE's aim - that a student's education directly provide a livelihood - meshes perfectly with that of OPEN. OPEN and IGNITE are partnering to provide spoken English and simple etiquette classes to selected girls from the 9th and 11th standards at Jaigopal Garodia Girls' HSS, Chennai. OPEN will strive to implement these classes in all our partner schools.

OPEN has been working with Dr. Murugaiyyan, Principal, for the past two years. Students from this school take vocational streams such as TV/Video Repair, General Machining, and Auto Mechanics. They have been getting jobs right out of high school, and a growing number of students from this school are going on to two-year Polytechnic programs to expand their skills. Children of weavers and manual laborers are now part of the Indian middle class, working for companies such as Airtel. Dr. Murugaiyyan's passion for educating, which is visible in this video, is the reason we are now trying to raise $100,000 towards buildings and labs at this school.

OPEN built a lunch shelter at this Girls' school in Chennai in 2007. We have been funding the annual education costs of 80 girls from classes 7-12.

OPEN built a lunch kitchen for this State Govt school in 2003. The kitchen doubles as a classroom for off-curriculum nursing and sewing classes that were started by a visionary headmistress. We have also funded the purchase of desks and benches for 10th and 12th grade students, who have been writing board exams sitting on the floor. We have been funding the annual education costs of 80 girls from classes 7-12. We have also started spoken English and Personality Development classes for select girls in Classes 9 and 11.

OPEN contributed towards the building of classrooms in this school, which is funded by a non-profit educational foundation in Coimbatore. This school's principal has been extremely patient and responsive to our requests for information about this school and its student body. We are also funding annual scholarships for 80 students at this school.

OPEN contributed $7500 towards a new classroom building in this school, where students were forced to study under trees in the open.

OPEN has provided blackboards, benches, desks, and other supplies at this rural school in Chennai district.