Journalism Next | Eye-opening trip to India inspires education fund

Editor's Note: Ranch Reflections are articles written by students who want to share their experiences, thoughts and concerns. This is a great opportunity for students to branch out beyond traditional news stories.

LAKEWOOD RANCH -- This summer was the most eye-opening experience I've ever had.

India's sights usually turn people away with poverty and polluted cities, but I found beauty in the country's most unexpected places.

I planned my trip to India through Global Leadership Adventures to learn about its education system and make a difference in the lives of children who rarely go to school past the third grade.

I worked with youngsters in the lowest class of Dharamsala, India, teaching 20 students ranging from 3 to 13 years old with two other volunteers. These children were eager to learn, soaking up every lesson we taught in math, geography, English and basic equality.

These children, however, were still luckier than those born into the slum.

The day my peers and I visited the slum to attend a seminar about the importance of education was the hardest day of the trip for many of us.

The most beautiful children I had ever seen were living in one of the world's ugliest environments. They lived in ripped trash bags serving as makeshift homes, and stood with hands outstretched, asking for food and water.

My group knew food would give these children instant comfort, but it wouldn't fix their bigger problems. They were stuck in a vicious cycle of poverty where the only solution was an education, which these students had no way of getting because public school is not free in their country.

We quickly learned education is expensive, but priceless.

One young slum-dwelling girl said: "Education is a light that can break the darkness and allow you to see what is really there."

The next day, my group visited somewhere that gave us hope. We went to the Tong Len Hostel, a nonprofit organization that took one slum child from every family and provided a place to sleep, three meals a day and an education

We also talked with Nisha, the strongest women I have ever met.

Nisha was raised in the local slum but, after being admitted into the Tong Len program, completed 12 years of schooling and was on her way to becoming a doctor. My peers and I were inspired to help this program admit more children, especially the ones we had met and connected with personally.

Once we got back to home base we started working to create a video of the slum and a "go fund me" account that we spread throughout social media in the hope it would reach someone generous enough to donate.

After one month, we raised more than $6,000 and the number continues to grow.

I have a vision those children will no longer have to look through trash in hope their picks strike metal, and their eyes won't have to search for a glimpse of light within the heaps of wrappers and rotten food just for something to sell for that day's meal. Instead, I see them with diplomas in their hands, smiling at each other knowing they overcame all the odds.

This story was originally published November 14, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Journalism Next | Eye-opening trip to India inspires education fund ."