Education
Anupama Chandan, the familiar face to the children
How Anupama Chandan bagged The Golden Apple Award
When you step into a new city that has nothing similar to what you've been seeing or living in, you look around for help; anyone to assist you, to help you get through the new environment, to help you adjust. And once you're comfortable, you make others comfortable. Even if you are an adult, you need someone to guide you through. Now, imagine a child in the same situation.
Anupama Chandan in the Niagara Falls district understands this need and has volunteered her time for more than 20 years to assist the children in the district's new language program.
Originally from Delhi, India, Anupama was 25 when she moved to America in January 1987 with her husband who was a family practitioner in Niagara falls, and a 15 months old child. Fortunately, she spoke English but that was the only common thing between her and America.
Amongst many surprises that came her way, the culture surprise was a little too much. She was used to big social groups where everybody was in everybody's business. The independence of doing whatever one wanted was very different for her. "Arranged marriage is a very foreign concept in this country. But it seems to work." she said.
Her ability to speak English, unlike few of her students, is an achievement from her English medium education in school and college. Other than that, her ability to understand and mix-up with kids came from her master's degree in developmental psychology from India which let her gain experience working in the integration of mentally handicapped and children with special needs into normal school.
"Chandan has volunteered her time for more than 20 years to transition newcomers at G.J. Mann (previously at Abate Elementary school) by speaking to them in her native Punjabi, as well as in Hindi and Urdu, while they learn English." Quoted a website.
When asked if she had seen some of the kids grow into adults, she said;
"I started in 1995 and in 1996 or ’97, there was one child in Grand Island. He was from Pakistan. He did not speak at all. So I went there for about 4 months, 2 times a week, constantly. The other day I met him at his high school in Grand Island and he is going to UB this year. I was so proud of him." Chandan, 54, was honoured last week with the Niagara Falls district’s highest award – the Golden Apple – for volunteering her time at least twice a week in the district’s new language program. She and her husband now have 3 grown children and have been living in Lewiston since 1992.
Image Courtesy: Buffalo news