SHDF Achieves Platinum Rating on GuideStar/Candid

Dear Friend, 
                                                                                 
Sat Sri Akal. Happy New Year to you and your family!
 
It is a great pleasure and an honor to inform you that SHDF has been awarded the Platinum Seal of Transparency 2023 by Guidestar/Candid, the largest and premier source of information in the world on non-profits.

Transparency and accountability have consistently been SHDF’s guiding principles, and this recognition affirms our adherence and commitment to these values. According to Guidestar/Candid, the platinum rating is “the highest level of recognition a nonprofit can achieve. It indicates a commitment in sharing financial data, impact metrics, and resource stewardship." As Guidestar notes, less than 1 percent of nonprofits nationally achieve this rating. (The seals are awarded at the Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum levels). It notes that “as the seals scale up, they require increasing amounts of information about an organization and its goals and effectiveness.” We deeply appreciate your strong support, encouragement and involvement with SHDF’s mission, which is reflected in this award.
 
In terms of the core mandate of SHDF, this year are planning to award 1800 scholarships, significantly more than the 1460 scholarships awarded last year. Almost three quarters of these scholarships are again expected to be awarded to female candidates, and around two-thirds from rural areas. For the current round of new applicants, written examinations have been conducted in our ten centers primarily in Punjab, but also in Chandigarh, Delhi, and Haryana, and the interview process is underway. With these 1800 expected disbursements, SHDF will have awarded well over 12,500 scholarships since inception. SHDF Scholarships have helped young women and men from the poorest of families build professional careers in law, accounting, engineering, computer applications, medicine, agriculture and teaching.
 
Alongside steadily increasing the number of scholarships, SHDF has regularly elicited feedback from students, alumni, and local volunteers and staff to keep enhancing support services through soft-skills workshops and mentoring.
 
We have a number of important complementary goals and initiatives underway including enhancing our outreach to supporters, mentor-mentee platform (allowing scholarship recipients to interact with and take advice from mentors), and setting up of Alumni forum. In all these activities technology will be playing an increasing role.
 
We will also be exploring the provision of coaching assistance and related support to SHDF Scholarship recipients who are high-performers and are motivated to take part in civil service and foreign service exams.

Your support is of critical importance to SHDF’s mission.  Each $550 donated makes a scholarship for a year possible. Please help us in reaching our goals, which will help transform countless lives for generations to come.
 
With deep gratitude,
The SHDF Team
www.shdf.org
contact@shdf.org