






Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.”
– John Dewey
“The purpose of education is to replace an empty mind with an open one.”
– Malcolm Forbes
“Education is learning what you didn’t even know you didn’t know.”
– Daniel J. Boorstin
Don’t just teach your children to read. Teach them to question what they read. Teach them to question everything.
– George Carlin
He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance; one cannot fly into flying.
— Friedrich Nietzsche
Education is simply the soul of a society as it passes from one generation to another.
― G.K. Chesterton
The beautiful thing about learning is that nobody can take it away from you.
― B.B. King

HOW TO APPLY SECTION
Each year before the academic year starts, Ascend invites application from prospective students, who desires to avail the support extended by the Foundation. The format for the Application is given in this website. Applicants are requested to download the Form and take a print-out of the same. The application should be filled properly giving all the information called for. The applicant should also annex all the required documents mentioned in the application form.
The completed application form along with the enclosures should be submitted at AEF’s office on or before May 31 st. The office address is also mentioned in this website.
AEF will process all the application forms and if the applicant is found eligible for further assessment, he or she will be called for interview before June 30th through telephonic call. The date and time of interview will be informed beforehand. The interview will be conducted by the Board of Trustees.
Once the interview sessions are completed, the selected applicant for receiving the support from the Foundation will receive information from the AEF office before July 31st. The decision made by the Board of Trustees will be final in this regard.
We Fight Illiteracy

Welcome to
Ascend Educational Foundation (AEF)
India has approximately 5% of its population (~ 75 million people) living below poverty line (BPL), with BPL being defined as Rs 54/-for the rural population and Rs 64/- for the urban population (purchasing power per person per day). (Source: Research by SBI published in Forbes India, October 17th, 2024.) But according to the World Bank report published in 2024, there are 129 million Indians below the poverty line. Suffice to say, India needs a determined intervention to continue to move people out of the poverty strata. One of the key instruments behind this socio-economic status is the literacy rate. There are wide variances in the literacy rates between states. The literacy rates have increased impressively with consistent efforts from the Central … and State Governments. (86% as per one source). This has been possible due to the above average growth in the economy which has impacted the earnings of the lower strata of the population positively. While the endeavour will be to continue to lift more of the population above the poverty line, there is a fervent need to improve the quality of life for the people of India. And the key element to ensure that is to improve the literacy levels of the country. Despite the impressive growth in the economy in the past decade, the efforts of the Government alone will be insufficient to achieve what is required to make the step towards becoming a developed Nation. Read more
Our Mission
The Primary aim of Ascend Educational Foundation will be to positively impact the lives of its beneficiaries in a holistic manner with a special focus on education, healthcare, cultural and personality development, with a view to significantly change the economic trajectory of the beneficiaries’ families.

VOLUNTEER
One of the key elements of AEF is the mentoring program. Educated and well-informed adult mentors are an important part of the ASCEND TEAM. Mentors are professionals in a wide variety of career fields who demonstrate through their daily lives the significance and rewards of hard work, focus and perseverance.
As a AEF mentor one offers:
- Information Mentors share their knowledge, experiences, and wisdom.
- Facilitating Choices Mentors provide valuable opportunities by facilitating academic and career choices.
- Challenges Mentors stimulate curiosity and build confidence by presenting new ideas, opportunities and challenges.
- Support Mentors encourage growth and achievement by providing an open and supportive environment.
- Goal Setting Mentors help beneficiaries discover talents and interests and define and attain those goals.
- Guidance Mentors guide beneficiaries in reaching academic, career, and personal goals.
- Role Models By sharing stories of achievement with beneficiaries, mentors can become role models.
To get started as a mentor:
Introduce yourself to the Foundation either through an e-mail or a telephonic call and enroll yourself as a registered mentor. Mention personal, career, and education interests; disability; and involvement with science, technology, engineering, math and art. Once registered as a Mentor with AEF, information will be provided on your role and responsibilities in addition to you being introduced to the beneficiary.

Join Us
Help us build a more literate and knowledge-centric nation. Your support can change lives and contribute to India’s development

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