Service Learning as an Educator

On January 21st 2017 the team of youth volunteers at Chess Without Borders in Barrington IL accomplished their mission by raising $2000 for fighting human trafficking and rebuilding flood-damaged homes in IL. This accomplishment came as a result of many lessons but mainly because there is a tradition established where youth volunteers recognize their extraordinary capability as change makers.

Many factors contributed to this possibility of empowering youth leadership. The seed of this innovative entrepreneurship was laid when the chess program was created as a grassroots program in an elementary school in Barrington IL. Among these factors was that chess attracts a diverse range of all ages, ethnicities, and socioeconomic groups and when there is an interaction between these groups, ideas are born through various perspectives. Other factors are the support of local schools and the community as well as the historical richness of chess itself dating back to almost the 5th century AD.

When funds are raised with a purpose of helping others a community comes together to achieve goals.

The January 21st event illustrated how youth enhance social, emotional, economic and cognitive skills when they serve.

The team loved collaborating with a local partner in Salem United Methodist Church so, “we can get more done together” said 10 year old Sahitya Maheswaran. The youth team initiated this humanitarian enterprise after they discovered that they could make a big difference together. “ I love doing things for others more than doing them for myself, said 13 year old Ethan Gagliano. They have been raising funds through hosting chess events for several years now and have generated over $133,000 in donations to local and global charities. The experience of initiating, organizing, planning and executing these events builds deep confidence and pride in their achievements. “Each of us can make big changes in other peoples lives through our actions”, said 18-year-old Eleanore van Marwijk Kooy. The evening honored 5 of these high school students who had qualified as delegates to the United Nations Youth Assembly in New York this summer where they met other high school students from around the world who had also been involved in service learning. The five students Eleanore van Marwijk Kooy, Toby Schwartz, Nabeel Rasheed, Siddharth Gehlaut and Rohan Ahuja inspired the audience by briefly speaking about their transformational experience at the UN and described how meeting a diverse group of people enriched them. All these students have volunteered for several years and understand the leadership role they play in making things happen. The star of the evening was Chris Baker who as a Tattoo Artist has done extensive work fighting human trafficking. He presented his amazing work to the youth volunteers as well as the audience. Visit at www.ink180.com to find out more about him.

Being focused on a common goal motivates and drives these youth volunteers to go beyond their potential, “I brought my friends to help me so we get more done” said 14 year old Ayushi Shah who had brought 2 of her fellow classmates to help out. Interestingly in order to excel at their goals many youth discover their natural talents that they use to make the team more productive. For example, 11-year-old Jane Bradley used her artistic skills to decorate the place. She was clever to collect assistants among younger children present there. Pranav and Prashant Ramachandra worked with the technical equipment whereas Aryan Shah served as the videographer for the evening. The 10-year-old twins Sahitya and Sanjaya Maheswaran delighted the audience with their brief dance performance. All of the volunteers served as enthusiastic hosts welcoming the guests as they energized the place for the event. Parents and many other adult volunteers brought delicious home cooked meals from many different cuisines.

The volunteers also understand how important every action is to producing such an event. They came early to set up the hall where the event was to be held and left after they cleaned, served and hosted the dinner with much enthusiasm and satisfaction, “I am so happy our actions help other kids”, said 16 year old Nabeel Rasheed.

Lastly, 17-year-old Toby Schwartz and 12-year-old Vishal Ahuja did a remarkable job-keeping track of the tickets and payments throughout the event.

Each of these students’ adventures in service learning has transformed their personalities into skillful, responsible, caring, curious social entrepreneurs. “The program has succeeded beyond my wildest expectations”, said the now 28 year old founder Rishi Sethi who used the social entrepreneurial skills he honed as a youth volunteer at Chess Without Borders to start his own company in Data Analysis and Behavioral Analytics in New York. The program was adopted by the 2008 US Chess Champion GM Yury Shulman who said, “The children teach me so many things.”

These award winning youth volunteers are: Ethan Gagliano, Pranav and Prashant Ramachandra, Prathik Kandimalla, Jack and Jane Bradley, Vishal and Rohan Ahuja, Eleanore van Marwijk Kooy, Aryan and Ayushi Shah, Toby Schwartz, Siddharth and Abhijeet Gehlaut, Nabeel Rasheed, Sanjaya and Sahitya Maheswaram, Sophia Cai, Julie Ann Ashley, Arnav and Adu Batta, Pranay Prabhakar.

Visit www.chesswob.org for viewing various humanitarian projects conducted since 2000.

The program has successfully created and sustained a culture of combining chess education with service and philanthropy.