MEETING YOUR FULL POTENTIAL 
On Monday night, our Rotary Club had a presentation from Education CHANCES Foundation, which does significant work in the lives of many disadvantaged and talented students in the City of Boroondara. Three presenters gave us specific information about ECF - Mel Key ( General Manager, Programs), Nikko Riazi ( Chairperson) and Diana Bao ( an alumnus). Also present was Dorothy Donaldson ( Fundraising and Partnerships Manager).
Mel raised some very specific problems facing some of the students in the City of Boroondara. Social pressures can escalate and anxiety arises due to the financial pressures at school. Students, especialy in Years 9 and 12, want to feel as if they belong to a community. The most basic of needs, such as laptops, which need to be constantly updated. School is an expensive place to be. Mel, previously a teacher and a Deputy Principal, advocates strongly for the power of education in changing students' lives. It is a confidence builder for students, when they are able to fully participate in school activities. Eleven partner schools participate in the ECF.
Nikko is the living embodiment of ECF. She reminded us that ECF has a legacy of eighteen years of transforming lives in Boroondara. ECF is a grass roots Boroondara organization which is local and community led. It is deeply embedded in schools. Nikko is a recipient of ECF, while at Kew High School. Her mother was a single parent with MS. With the financial backing of ECF she gained the ability to experience school life more fully. She acknowledges the power of removing barriers, and how effective it has been.
As far as Nikko is concerned, the next generation should have the same opportunities she had. The experience gives dignity and self-determination for the scholarship recipients. This is not a transactional relationship. This is a connection which is relational, long term and a mutually meaningful relationship. ECF opens up belief in self and the financial barrier is mitigated.
Diana Bao, a student in speech pathology at La Trobe University,, is the perfect example of an alumnus of ECF. At first, she gave up and became inactive, not striving for anything higher.
Once she received a scholarship in Year Nine, she changed the way she approached her life at school. Her entire world was turned upside down. The trajectory of her life was flipped on its head. It gave her a chance to meet her full potential. She sought out positions of leadership at school. Diana's presentation was outstanding, and demonstrated the way ECF reshapes students' lives.