• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • The Harker School
  • Menu
  • Admission
  • Lower School
  • Middle School
  • Upper School
  • Summer
  • More
    • About
    • News
    • Alumni
    • Giving
  • News

  • The Harker News provides timely information, news and features about the Harker community to current and alumni Harker families.

  • |
  • General News
  • Lower School
  • Middle School
  • Upper School
  • Alumni
  • Summer
  • In the News

Rising senior coordinates massive book donation to libraries in Africa

June 18, 2020 by Special to Harker News Online

Share this:

  • Tweet

Sometime soon, an array of teenagers in Africa, with lovingly packed boxes of K-5 math textbooks hoisted on their shoulders, will complete the final steps of a journey that started with a Harker student’s efforts to blend sustainability with service to the world’s poor.

Driven to find ways to propel positive change, rising senior Sachi Bajaj started a nonprofit entity called Me2U Foundation last year focused on reclaiming various items for use abroad, setting in motion of a chain of events that, among other things, diverted nearly 1,000 used textbooks from the waste stream for the use of mostly rural libraries serving an estimated 45,000 African children.

  • MS girls robotics qualifies for world championships
    Read
    MS girls robotics qualifies for world championships

“I want to show people that anyone can do this, even if you are just in high school like I am,” said Bajaj. “We truly can make a difference, and the results are right in front of us. It is unbelievable to think that 700 books, which possibly could have reached the landfills, went to children who do not have sufficient resources to even learn, something that myself and others may take for granted.”

The difficulty of transporting learning resources to remote communities disadvantaged by lack of access to textbooks was overcome in large part by The Harker School’s contribution of funds to finance the shipping of the books, first to New Orleans and then most likely to Malawi, but possibly instead to Ghana, depending upon available space on a July trans-Atlantic container ship. More than 200 additional textbooks were sent free of charge to Thrift Books, a socially conscious, for-profit organization that re-sells books on the secondary market.

Harker library director Lauri Vaughan, who has overseen other efforts to connect books with readers, proclaimed the arrangement “a win for the environment and for all those readers who will use these books to learn valuable skills.”
Claire Hubel, container manager for The African Library Project, designated Bajaj, Me2U and The Harker School global literacy champions, noting that the Bajaj was “absolutely instrumental in making all this happen.”

Bajaj’s foundation got its start in 2019 as a project aiming to reduce waste and share resources such as clothing, shoes and toys, then grew this year to focus on books, 320 million of which are estimated to be wasted annually.

“Over the course of five months, I worked very closely with Ms. Vaughan to make sure that these books would be redirected from landfills to the underprivileged in a sustainable manner,” Bajaj said. ” I would send lists and lists of updates to Ms. Vaughan about possible organizations, but many of them simply would not work out. At this time, my organization did not have sufficient funding to ship over this many textbooks.”

Finding the African Library Project in May revived Bajaj’s hope that the books would find a proper home after all. The African Library Project distributes books to libraries across Malawi and six other countries in Africa. It does so from the Port of New Orleans, however, so the not so small matter of transporting the jumbo load of elementary education materials remained a hurdle. Harker stepped in with $960 to finance the books’ voyage.

Harker sustainability czar Greg Lawson called the project “a remarkable undertaking by Sachi and Lauri,” adding, “It is noteworthy that this undertaking began as Sachi’s brainchild, but that Lauri saw the vision and helped her do the work within the administration of the school to bring this to fruition. Hopefully these texts will land in the lap of a student whose curiosity will be piqued and will endeavor to learn and grow because of this exposure. These books may become ‘a gift that keeps on givin’’ and if they do, all the effort will be worthwhile – and that’s not even taking into account the sustainability element here!”

Bajaj distinguished herself through her perseverance amid the numerous obstacles attending such enterprises, Vaughan said. “Where others have good ideas, but struggle to implement them, Sachi stayed with this and I am so happy with how it is turning out.”

Hubel, who brought her daughter to campus to help Vaughan pack the volumes, worked with partners in Malawi to plan distribution of the gently used tomes to 45 libraries in the landlocked southeast African nation, where literacy has been on the decline, currently falling below 70 percent for males and at just 55 percent for females.

“There is a very small chance that this collection of math books may be held until our Ghana container (which will be shipping in the fall) on the off-chance that the Malawi container is full,” Hubel said. “The container is going to be very full, and these books may be loaded last, since they represent a supplement for many schools, and we don’t want to send these at the expense of a single school getting their full library.”

Regardless of which destination the books reach, they form a foundation of hope that acquisition of STEM skills can help lift poor children from poverty, enabling them to contribute to the development of their homeland.

“Our procedure is to fill a shipping container for each country we are working with, and the container to Malawi will already be carrying 60 libraries of 1,000 books each,” Hubel said. “Luckily we have just started adding STEM supplements to many of the libraries that we send to, so we decided that this donation would comprise a one box STEM supplement to each of the 45 primary grade schools in this container. In order to qualify for a library from the African Library Project, a school has to fill out an application demonstrating its need. Most of the schools we work with are in rural communities, and many do not have any books at all. Each box of textbooks that we packed at Harker was sorted to contain a full, leveled math curriculum from K-5th (or 6th) grade. As such, each box will be a valuable resource for the school receiving it, and will likely be used by teachers in support of their math instruction.

“The books that Harker donated so generously were almost new and very well-made. They have many years of use in them, in the careful hands that will receive them. These books will be used by teachers in 45 schools, reaching 45,377 students in all … and will then be used by each incoming grade as well. Using books this way will touch an immense number of lives!”

You may also like

  • Hundreds of donations collected for pajama and book drive
    Hundreds of donations collected for pajama and book drive
  • Assembly celebrates Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy through calls to service
    Assembly celebrates Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy through calls to service
  • Harker to conduct Assessment of Inclusivity and Multiculturalism
    Harker to conduct Assessment of Inclusivity and Multiculturalism
  • Student-organized benefit concert to honor CA firefighters
    Student-organized benefit concert to honor CA firefighters
  • GSA Club Shows Support for LGBT Community
    GSA Club Shows Support for LGBT Community
  • Students raising money for Black Girls Code and Second Harvest Food Bank
    Students raising money for Black Girls Code and Second Harvest Food Bank
  • Students and faculty contribute to Palo Alto Black Lives Matter mural
    Students and faculty contribute to Palo Alto Black Lives Matter mural
  • Senior Andrew Lu discusses student-founded nonprofit with CBS Bay Area
    Senior Andrew Lu discusses student-founded nonprofit with CBS Bay Area

Related

Filed Under: Upper School Tagged With: African Library Project, Outreach

Primary Sidebar

Search for Articles

Multimedia Features

  • Harker Research Symposium Video Earns Award
  • Into the Fringe: Conservatory Takes ‘Into the Woods’ to Edinburgh

Subscribe to Harker News via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to Harker News and receive a daily digest of recent posts.

Delivered by FeedBurner

Trending Stories

  • DoorDash co-founder Andy Fang '10 gifts $10 millionDoorDash co-founder Andy Fang ’10 gifts $10 million
  • Dashing through life: DoorDash founder Andy Fang '10  – an alumni profile from Harker MagazineDashing through life: DoorDash founder Andy Fang…
  • Students win grand prize and other awards at international hack-a-thonsStudents win grand prize and other awards at…

The Harker Magazine

Published two times a year, The Harker Magazine showcases some of the top news, leading programs, inspiring people and visionary plans of the greater Harker community.

More Harker publications

About Harker

The Harker School is a non-profit, private K-12 school in Silicon Valley that has earned international recognition for its top academics, quality teachers and students' achievements. Founded in 1893, Harker is the largest independent school of its kind in California, with a dedicated campus for each of its divisions – elementary school, middle school and upper school – in San Jose, CA.

Learn more about The Harker School

Links

  • Harker Aquila
  • Preschool
    • Academics
    • Specialty Classes
    • Teachers
    • Support & Services
    • Campus & Facilities
    • School Community
  • Lower School
    • Academics
    • Programs & Extracurriculars
    • Teachers
    • Students
    • Support & Services
    • Campus & Facilities
    • School Community
  • Middle School
    • Academics
    • Programs & Extracurriculars
    • Teachers
    • Students
    • Support & Services
    • Campus & Facilities
    • School Community
  • Upper School
    • Academics
    • Programs & Extracurriculars
    • Teachers
    • Students
    • Support & Services
    • Campus & Facilities
    • School Community
    • Admission
    • Summer
    • About
    • News
    • Alumni
    • Giving
The Harker School

Copyright © 1893-2015 • The Harker School • 500 Saratoga Ave., San Jose, CA 95129 • 408.249.2510 | Contact Us | Privacy Policy

  • Follow Us!
  • Admission
    • Request Information
    • Campus Visits
    • Applying to Harker
    • Tuition & Financial Aid
    • Admission FAQs
  • Preschool
    • Academics
    • Specialty Classes
    • Teachers
      • Teacher Directory
    • Support & Services
      • Extended Care
      • Food Progam
      • Libraries
      • Summer Preschool
      • Transportation
      • Safety & Security
    • Campus & Facilities
    • School Community
  • Lower School
    • Academics
    • Programs & Extracurriculars
      • After-School Program
      • Athletics
        • Coach Directory
        • Athletic Events
      • Character Development & Outreach
      • Global Education
        • Global Relationships - Sister Schools
      • Performing Arts
        • Performing Arts Teacher Directory
      • STEM
      • Student Research
      • Visual Arts
    • Teachers
      • Teacher Directory
    • Students
    • Support & Services
      • Food Program
      • Health & Wellness
      • Libraries
      • Safety & Security
      • Transportation
    • Campus & Facilities
    • School Community
  • Middle School
    • Academics
    • Programs & Extracurriculars
      • After-School Program
      • Athletics
        • Coach Directory
        • Athletic Events
      • STEM
      • Visual Arts
      • Global Education
        • Global Relationships - Sister Schools
      • Performing Arts
        • Performing Arts Teacher Directory
      • Character Development & Outreach
      • Speech & Debate
      • Student Research
    • Teachers
      • Teacher Directory
    • Students
    • Support & Services
      • Food Program
      • Health & Wellness
      • Libraries
      • Safety & Security
      • Technology
      • Transportation
    • Campus & Facilities
    • School Community
  • Upper School
    • Academics
    • Programs & Extracurriculars
      • Character Development & Outreach
      • Performing Arts
        • Performing Arts Teacher Directory
      • Athletics
        • Coach Directory
        • Athletic Events
      • Visual Arts
      • STEM
      • Business & Entrepreneurship
      • Global Education
        • Global Relationships - Sister Schools
      • Speech & Debate
      • Student Research
    • Teachers
      • Teacher Directory
    • Students
    • Support & Services
      • College Counseling
      • Food Program
      • Health & Wellness
      • Libraries
      • Safety & Security
      • Technology
      • Transportation
    • Campus & Facilities
    • School Community
  • Summer
    • Summer Preschool
    • Summer Camp Plus: KinderCamp
    • Summer Camp Plus: Grades 1-5
    • Summer Institute Middle School
    • Summer Institute Upper School
    • English Language Institute
      • Program Details
        • International English Language Institute Brochures
    • Swim School
    • Summer @ The Conservatory
    • About
      • Eligibility
      • Summer Jobs
      • International Families
      • Summer Registration and Policies
  • About
    • Contact Us
    • Philosophy & Mission
    • History
      • Harker's 125th!
    • Events
      • Family & Alumni Picnic
        • Admission Passes & Tickets
        • Alumni Guests
        • Schedule of the Day
        • Raffle
        • Silent Auction
        • Picnic T-Shirts
        • Donations
        • Sponsorships
        • Volunteer
        • History
      • Homecoming
      • Harker Concert Series
      • Harker Speaker Series
      • Harker Gala: Night on the Town
        • Community Sponsorships
        • Corporate Sponsorships
      • Harker Sports Clinics
      • Research Symposium
        • Student Abstracts
        • Corporate Exhibitors
      • Harker Alumni Gold Classic
    • Message from the Head of School
    • Board of Trustees
    • Facts & Stats
      • Student Achievements
      • Alumni Achievements
    • Sustainability at Harker
      • Nichols Hall: LEED Certified
    • Eagle Store
    • Staff Directory
    • Careers
    • Media Information
    • Privacy Policy
    • COPPA Statement
  • News
    • General News
    • Preschool News
    • Lower School News
    • Middle School News
    • Upper School News
    • Alumni News
    • Summer News
    • In The News
  • Alumni
    • Transcript Requests
  • Giving
    • How to Plan Your Giving
    • Annual Giving
      • How Funds are Spent
      • Gift Clubs
    • Capital Giving
      • About the Cornerstones Campaign
      • The Cornerstones Of Success Campaign: Phases 1-5
      • Gift Recognition & Namign Opportunities
        • Capital Giving Gift Clubs
      • How To Make A Capital Gift
      • Naming Opportunities
        • Performing Arts Center
        • Athletics Center
        • Paving Tiles
        • Bucknall Campus
        • Saratoga Campus
        • Policy
    • Endowment & Planned Giving
      • Endowment Policy
    • Volunteering
    • Donations and Pledges