Leading By Serving
According to UNICEF, over 60 million children live in Bangladesh, a figure greater than the population of the United Kingdom.
One of Bangladesh’s many young faces.
Between 2005 and 2009 the primary school attendance rate for boys and girls in Bangladesh was 80% and 83%, respectively.
Secondary school attendance for boys was 46% and 53% for girls.
While the first statistics demonstrate a clear attempt to provide universal education in one of the most densely populated countries in the world, something goes wrong between primary and secondary school. School attendance declines dramatically because dropout rates in primary school are disturbingly high. Many societal problems are to blame for this phenomenon: child labor, early marriages for girls, and high mortality rates among them.
Despite its poverty, Bangladesh has made incredible strides towards development and meeting children-related Millennium Development Goals. But it is a struggle, and the children suffer. Without education, there is little hope to life outside of abject poverty. In a nation where half the children live under the international poverty line, it is critical to provide a means to a better life.
The key is education. Schooling is the pathway to a meaningful life, a life that is more than just survival.
This is where I hope to come in.
I have always been conscientious of my unique identity. I am not a Bangladeshi, nor am I an American. I’m both, tied into one, with Muslim thrown into the mix. These are my roots, and have inherently influenced who I am and who I am becoming. I have never quite fit into America or Bangladesh; I am always an obvious standout. In Bangladesh, my great-uncle jokingly calls me memsahib, which is what natives called white mistresses during the period of British Imperialism. My clothes, my manners, my accent and demeanor, even my walk seems to be distinctly American. And yet, in America, my skin color, my name, my religion and cultural traditions set me apart.
At a café in Dhaka.
Fortunately, this has never been an issue for me. I like to stand out, I like to be unique, I like that I am different. This situation, however, has made me question my life and the blessings I’ve been given. I have two cultures to call home, I have escaped a fate of poverty, and I am enrolled in a very prestigious School of Architecture in the United States. God must have blessed me with these gifts for a reason. There is a purpose to my life. I just have to find it. And this brings me back to my roots.
Everything for me goes back to education. My grandfathers on both sides of my family tree climbed the ladder of education to lift themselves out of rural life, and both did so in a spectacular fashion. They were not content with being city clerks; both were first generation university students and both obtained PhDs. Their hard work ensured that their progeny could move forward in life and succeed.
But what defines success? Wealth? Comfort? Power? Happiness? Probably all of the above. My definition of success is fulfillment, justice, and compassion. I’ve known that I have to give back to the world what the world has given me. Islam teaches us to spread good in the world, and that is my mission. I’ve determined that I need to define the overarching theme of my life through service. Now I need to fill in the frame with the details. My vision begins in college.
I am an Architecture and Plan II student. This is an apt, if somewhat difficult partnership. Because Plan II prides itself on the Renaissance education it provides, I am getting a prestigious and well-rounded education. Architecture melds seamlessly with this because architecture by nature requires me to constantly learn everything about everything. You cannot build without understanding people, the environment, human nature, weather conditions, political situations, the laws of gravity and picturesque massing. The list never ends. With these degrees, I can help improve educational opportunities for children in Bangladesh. There is a parity of decent school buildings in rural areas, and as an architect, I can build these structures. Three quarters of Bangladesh’s population lives in rural areas, over half of whom subsist below the poverty line. Villages desperately need schools to teach these children the way to success.
I think it is imperative that the world responds to this crisis. I understand that there are similar stories to this one all over the world, but Bangladesh is one of my countries. Half of my roots bury into Bengali earth, so my personal obligation is there.
The first step for me is to complete my education. Both majors are crucial to my future as a skilled architect. An education from the States is well respected internationally, and UT and its School of Architecture are fairly renowned throughout the architecture community. These are two very demanding programs with exacting standards, and in conjunction can easily wear students down. I question the strength of my passions for each program far more often than I would like, but something always keeps me determined to tackle the challenge. Few people understand, because few people undertake this track – I know of only three other students besides me. Despite the challenges of the lifestyle, I believe I have made the right choice. The knowledge that I can help a small portion of the world reminds me why I’ve chosen this educational path. I will continue to take studio classes, and gear my focus towards sustainable architecture. Through Plan II, I hope to take a broad range of courses to expand my knowledge base. I plan to take Anthropology and other social sciences, as well as International Studies courses for elective credits in order to understand human dynamics, global politics, and cultures better as well. Because of the nature of my dual major, I have four more years to complete after this, after which I must take exams to obtain my architecture license. This will enable me to practice in the field. I also plan on going to graduate school – architecture is an incredibly competitive field, and I must do as much as I can to stand out. So Harvard, the top architecture graduate program, is on my radar. PhD, here I come.
However, between graduation and graduate school, I have other plans. I plan to spend 2 years working for the Peace Corps. President JFK challenged us to think outside of our country and the insular bubble of our private lives, and I will respond to that challenge. The Peace Corps is the perfect training ground. Bangladesh is now closed to the Peace Corps, but I would love to work in another South Asian country facing similar problems, such as Cambodia. There are several different fields I can work in: Education, Environment, Health, Youth and Community Development, Agriculture, HIV/AIDS, Food Security, and Business and Information and Communication Technology.
I want to work in Education. Because education is so significant to me, I would like to be involved in every step of it, from student, to teacher, to school builder. I cannot imagine anything more rewarding than to directly influence and improve the life of a child. The following video provides an insight into the life of an Education Volunteer in the Peace Corps:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uRbeW-Vro8.
In addition, this way I can experience what a teacher and student experience, and get an innate understanding of the needs that a village school must fulfill. Poor architecture occurs when the designer fails to get inside her client’s life and mind, and doesn’t respond to the client’s needs. I want to create secondary schools that
succeed. Schools in which children feel comfortable and safe and excited to attend. Schools that teachers can utilize to the best of their abilities and where they can feel at ease. Schools that combat the steep dropout rates and are environmentally sustainable, easy to build and replicate by hand, and are
beautiful. It is incredibly important – no, it is
vital, to create beautiful schools. This is because people must be proud of their buildings. Villagers who are proud of their school will make an effort to ensure that their children attend. A beautiful structure will get used. It will be a source of inspiration and attraction.
An ugly, utilitarian one will simply be another blemish on the land, and will inspire and excite no one.
As a teacher, I would learn precisely what would create a sense of pride and honor in a school.
This is an example that truly works. It is called the METI Project.
Due to my education in the United States, I would also be able to teach skills that will be valued in a third world country. My English classes will assist me because English is incredibly valued outside of America. Bangladesh suffers in comparison to countries such as India because English courses are not as successful in schools that are not explicitly English-medium. On an international level, the quality of English one speaks is equated to the quality of education and level of competency one is perceived to have achieved. Besides that, English classes teach students to develop both the left and right sides of their brains; it is both an analytical and creative process. Whole-brained approaches teach students holistic methods of problem solving. This is critical for a population that needs to lift itself out of poverty. In addition, the skills that I’ve learned in my English classes have taught me to approach problems with an open mind. They have taught me to utilize my voice effectively and convey my ideas clearly and succinctly. This has come in incredibly useful in architecture, because presenting abstract ideas concretely to clients and review panels is critical to success. Also, if I decide to start my own firm, my English skills will assist me because businesses require high levels of written skills.
Through the Peace Corps, I would also learn adaptability. As we have learned in this course, character and leadership qualities develop from taking risks, making mistakes, and throwing ourselves out of our elements. Our adventures with experiential learning and free falling have already begun to prepare me for this, but the Peace Corps would be the catalyst. The lifestyle I am proposing to lead won’t be the most financially stable one, so it’s a scary thought. I plan to work with a nonprofit group to accomplish these goals. After finishing with the Peace Corps, I will try to get a job with a firm in Northern Europe. Countries like Germany and Norway and Denmark do a lot of nonprofit work in Africa and Asia. This will be valuable experience – but it’s also daunting. Getting into a firm like that is difficult. However, our fourth year of undergraduate studies can be spent interning abroad, so I hope to be placed in a firm through whom I can make connections and to which I can return after completing my Peace Corps stint. If that doesn’t work out, I will start my own firm. That is the most daunting goal of all: to strike out completely on my own. The thought of complete independence is terrifying, especially in an unfamiliar country.
Last week, I attended one of UTSOA’s Lecture Series. The speaker was Francis Kere, an architect from Burkina Faso who went to school in Berlin. He formed his own firm and organization for building schools, and has three main design principles on which he relies: local materials, traditional knowledge, and the power of the people. He builds schools in villages, including his own village of Gando, Burkina Faso, as well as in India.
His projects span the globe and are not limited only to schools, but the fact that he has succeeded and is living what is in essence my dream gives me hope. Perhaps I could work with him in order to gain experience for my own goals.
Due to the challenges of my college life, I sometimes lose sight of the future. It can be quite difficult, and sometimes I wonder if perhaps I’m meant for something else. No matter what, I know whatever I do must be meaningful. It must have purpose. In the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, “I do not wish to expiate, but to live. My life is for itself and not for a spectacle. I much prefer that it should be of a lower strain, so it be genuine and equal, then that it should be glittering and unsteady. I wish it to be sound and sweet, and not to need diet and bleeding.”
The photo speaks for itself.
Total Word Count: 2109
Without Quotes: 2050
IMAGES:
- http://www.unicef.org/bangladesh/overview.html
- Picture taken by my mother
- http://www.greendiary.com/entry/meti-school-in-bangladesh-is-hand-built-and-eco-friendly/
- http://home.messiah.edu/~aw1313/PeaceCorps2.html
