Sponsor a Child
Student Sponsorship Program
The Student Sposorship Program was launched in 1996 by Maurice Forster, who at that time was secretary of the Eighty Club Melbourne (ECM) and editor of its newsletter.
Maurice won committee approval to coordinate a sponsorship program. He invited any members wishing to sponsor the education of students (selected by DBU in Sri Lanka), to contact him. Enthusiastic membership response as well as DBU support had the SSP up and running.
Its aim was "To improve the economic standing of the Burgher Community in S.L. by providing financial support for education and the development of employment related skills".
Initially, operating outside the aegis of the ECM, due to taxation rules relating to charities which precluded payments for educational purposes, the Student Sponsorship Program was totally independent, both financially and administratively, of the club.
When the Commonwealth Government included educational assistance as an acceptable form of charity for tax exemption purposes, the SSP became an an integral part of the activities of the ECM.
There are currently two geographically separate chapters of this scheme with one in Colombo and the other in Batticaloa.
Colombo - There are a total of 145 students who receive financial assitance for their schooling.
This scheme is coordinated on behalf of the ECM by the Dutch Burgher Union (DBU) in Colombo, Sri Lanka
Batticaloa - The SSP in Batticaloa has a total of 44 students being sponsored. The ECM is assisted in managing this scheme by the Dutch Burgher Union Batticaloa.
HOW TO SPONSOR A CHILD
The primary functions of the program are to receive and accept/reject applications from eligible students and then correlate accepted students with sponsors as per their requirements and sponsorship payments.
As the core function of the program is to provide financial assistance to deserving students and given the high cost of education relative to wages, all aspects of their circumstances are taken into consideraton. Priority is given to students from low to middle income familes, however a parent's committment to provide the best education for their children is also considered, as assistance to such a student can alleviate the financial burdens on the rest of the family.
Sponsors select students from profiles submitted by the welfare coordinators of the DBU and (post Tsunami) the Burgher Union in Batticaloa. Students are required to have a Burgher parent, of low to middle income, be over 5 years of age and attend an approved educational institution. Sponsorship costs A$20.00 for juniors and A$25 for seniors, per month.
Sponsors money and donations are spent only on benefits to the students.
SSP funds provide students with
1. A quarterly allowance, increasing with level of study.
2. A cash gift at Christmas.
3. An annual book allowance in January, each year and some special needs eg: spectacles etc.
Donations provided for bi-lingual dictionaries, and bicycles in Batticaloa.
A Christmas party is provided for the students by the Eighty Club Melbourne.
We invite inquiries from potential sponsors for students whose applications are regularly sent to us by the repsentatives in Sri Lanka. Please contact the Student Sponsorship Coordinator, should you require further information on the scheme
Trevor Collette
SSP Coordinator