Mentor of Change Program is a strategic nation building initiative to engage leaders who can guide and mentor students in thousands of Atal Tinkering Labs that Atal Innovation Mission has established / is in the process of establishing across India. We are looking for leaders who can spend 1 to 2 hours every week in one or more such labs and enable students to experience, learn and practice future skills such as design and computational thinking.
These labs are non-prescriptive by nature, and mentors are expected to be enablers rather than instructors.
Possible areas of contribution could be, but not limited to:
a) Technical Knowhow: building prototypes,
b) Innovation and Design: inculcating solution oriented approach,
c) Inspirational: leadership and self-motivation, and
d) Business and Entrepreneurship: encouraging ideas and team building
e) Sounding board / guide, break stereotypes and bias to bring about mind set and behavioral change
1. I have read the Guidelines for Mentor India and agree with the Terms of Engagement.
2. I understand that my engagement with Mentor India is on strictly a pro-bono basis and and no financial engagement will be involved at any level from Atal Innovation Mission.
3. (In case of an individual registration) I understand that I will be engaging with Mentor India strictly on an individual basis and I will not be considered as a representative of Government of India / NITI Aayog / Atal Innovation Mission / Atal Tinkering Labs or any such related entities
4. (In case of a corporate registration) I understand that I will be engaging with Mentor India strictly as a representative of the Corporation / Institution that I am currently associated with and I will not be considered as a representative of Government of India / NITI Aayog / Atal Innovation Mission / Atal Tinkering Labs or any such related entities. I also understand that my association with Mentor India, as a corporate registrant, is concurrent with my association with the Corporation / Institution that I have indicated in the application form.
5. I have read and understood the rules of engagement with students inside / outside Atal Tinkering Labs, as detailed in the Guidelines.
6. If selected as a mentor, I will be to read and sign an Atal Innovation Mission approved child protection policy document and an engagement document before starting my engagement with Atal Tinkering Labs.
7. I understand that Atal Innovation Mission reserves the right to terminate services of mentors at any point of time without any justification.
8. I understand and accept that if I am selected as a mentor, I will be subject additional terms and conditions with regards to my association with the Mentor India initiative.
An Atal Innovation Mission initiative to engage leaders who will empower young innovators at Atal Tinkering Labs
NITI Aayogâs Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) is Government of Indiaâs flagship initiative to promote a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship in the country. AIMâs objective is to develop new programmes and policies for fostering innovation in different sectors of the economy, provide platform and collaboration opportunities for different stakeholders, create awareness and create an umbrella structure to oversee innovation ecosystem of the country. AIMâs flagship schemes include establishing Atal Tinkering Labs and Atal Incubation Centers, providing scaling up support to Established Incubation Centers, and finding ultra-low cost solution to Indiaâs most intractable problems through Atal Vikas Challenges and Atal Grand Challenges.
Atal Tinkering Labs are dedicated works spaces where students (Class 6th to Class 12th) learn innovation skills and develop ideas that will go on to transform India. The labs are powered to acquaint students with state-of-the-art equipment such as 3D printers, robotics & electronics development tools, IoT & sensors etc.
The lab activities are designed to spur the spark of creativity, and go beyond regular curriculum and text book learning. The labs will let students explore skills of future such as design and computational thinking, adaptive learning and artificial intelligence.
Atal Innovation Mission has / is in the process of setting up 900+ such labs across India and aims to have 2,000 such labs by end of 2017.
The Atal Tinkering Labs are being established in schools which are passionate about science and innovation â government as well as private. Each selected school is provided a grant-in-aid that includes a one-time establishment cost of Rs. 10 lakh and operational expenses of Rs. 10 lakh for a maximum period of 5 years. Additional support is also provided by creating resources which will guide schools on concepts of tinkering and the key elements of successfully implementing an Atal Tinkering Lab on the ground.
Operation of the Atal Tinkering Labs will be monitored on a suitable periodic basis by an advisory body comprising of the following suggested members:
i. Principal of the School â Chairman
ii. Faculty-in-charge of the ATL â Convener (hereby defined as Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge)
iii. Representative from local industry/local community/ young innovators/ reputed academia/ alumni â Two Members
iv. Parents of School students â Two Members
Mentor India is a strategic nation building initiative to engage leaders who can guide and mentor students in 900+ Atal Tinkering Labs that Atal Innovation Mission has established / is in the process of establishing across India.
We are looking for leaders who can engage on a regular basis in one or more such labs and enable students to experience, learn and practice future skills such as design and computational thinking.
These labs are non-prescriptive by nature, and mentors are expected to be enablers rather than instructors.
Possible areas of contribution could be, but not limited to: a) Technical Knowhow: building prototypes, b) Innovation and Design: inculcating solution oriented approach, c) Inspirational: leadership and self-motivation, and d) Business and Entrepreneurship: encouraging ideas and team building
1. Corporates (including but not limited to corporations, MSMEs, entrepreneurs, innovators, maker-spaces, NGO partners), Government organizations, higher education institutes, academicians (including applicants from research organizations), students from undergraduate and post graduate programs are eligible to apply and become a part of Mentor India. The terms of engagement of becoming a part of Mentor India are elaborated in âTerms of Engagement�? section.
2. The selected mentors are expected to provide mentorship within the outlined areas outlined in the âProposed Areas of Mentorship�? section.
3. The selected mentors will have to follow certain roles and responsibilities which are outlined in the âProposed Roles and Responsibilities�? section.
4. Selected mentors are to volunteer their time and services strictly on a pro-bono basis. However, Atal Innovation Mission would like to recognize the work done by mentors in various forms as mentioned in the âProposed Recognition for Mentors�? section.
5. Atal Innovation Mission will be an enabling agency for Mentor India and work with volunteer mentors / corporates / schools to ensure smooth functioning of the program. In order to assess the impact of the program and contribute towards its improvement, Atal Innovation Mission will monitor the mentoring activities based on a duly formed criteria and feedback on an ongoing and consolidated basis.
6. Mentor India guidelines, including âTerms of Engagement�?, are subject to periodic review in consultation with concerned stakeholders, and may be modified in future.
1. Atal Innovation Mission reserves the right to select the mentors based on a rigorous screening and selection process.
2. The proposed mentoring will be finalized by Atal Innovation Mission, in consultation with respective Atal Tinkering Labs, after successful due diligence of the mentors.
3. Allocation of Atal Tinkering Labs for mentoring to selected mentors will be done strictly by Atal Innovation Mission. While utmost effort will be devoted to ensure selected mentors get the Atal Tinkering Labs of their choice, such a choice can not be guaranteed. Selected mentors will be asked to confirm their adherence to the selected Atal Tinkering Labs. All such confirmed allocations will be considered final and no modifications will be accommodated subsequently.
4. The selected mentors will be engaged on a pro-bono basis and no financial engagement will be involved at any level from Atal Innovation Mission.
5. The selected mentors will not be allowed to promote their products and / or services inside the school.
6. The in-person interactions with students will strictly take place inside an Atal Tinkering Labs / school premises only, in presence of an Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge / designated school teacher.
7. No mentor will be permitted to meet or take any school students outside the school premises without the explicit permission of the school principal and the Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge.
8. The interaction between students and mentors through the portal developed for Mentor India will also be moderated / monitored for suitability of content and language.
9. The selected mentors will work with the respective Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge to coordinate on the mentoring sessions. The selected mentors and respective Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge may use the portal developed for Mentor India for such coordination. Any such coordination / modification has to be informed by the selected mentors 48 hours in advance.
10. The selected mentors will have to dedicate time on a regular basis. The selected mentors are expected to spend 1 â 2 hours per week during / after school hours. Furthermore, an ongoing commitment for at least one year with the school is necessary (will typically involve ~40 weeks of academic operations in a year). Selected mentors will be to sign a commitment document to this effect.
11. Selected mentors are also expected to interact with the mentors through the portal developed for Mentor India. These interactions could include supporting and reviewing specific innovation projects, support in innovation competitions, and community outreach. The expected time commitment for such interactions is ~30 â 40 hours in a year.
12. The selected mentors will be requested to spread awareness about the program and provide regular feedback to increase the impact of the program.
13. The performance and contributions of selected mentors will be monitored on a regular basis by Atal Innovation Mission. Atal Innovation Mission reserves the right to terminate services of mentors at any point of time without any justification.
14. Atal Innovation Mission and NITI Aayog will not be responsible for the behavior of the selected mentors. However, selected mentors will be chosen through a stringent selection process which may include telephonic interviews and background checks.
15. In addition, all selected mentors will be to read and sign an Atal Innovation Mission approved child protection policy document and an engagement document before starting their engagement with Atal Tinkering Labs.
16. Safety and security of school students is of utmost importance to Atal Innovation Mission, and hence Atal Innovation Mission reserves the right to take appropriate safety measures in coordination with Atal Tinkering Labs Advisory Committee, local administrative and law enforcement agencies etc.
17. In case of any dispute, the same shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the court of Delhi.
The contributions of the selected mentors is expected, but not limited to, one or more of the following areas:
1. Technical Know-How
i. Utilize available equipment to build products in various fields, including IoT, electronics, mechatronics, biomedical engineering, 3D printing, robotics, etc.
ii. Help to build prototypes using the latest technologies.
2. Innovation and Design
i. Focus on problem solving including aspects of design thinking.
ii. Inculcating a solution-oriented approach.
3. Inspirational
i. Emphasize on personal journey and holistic soft skill development, learning from failures, and becoming self-motivated to strive for excellence.
ii. Inculcate leadership skills, self-motivation and reflection on oneself
4. Business and Entrepreneurship
i. Encourage students to create a business model in order to form sustainable and successful enterprises
ii. Instil and inspire students to become entrepreneurial leaders and encourage team building
5. Break stereotypes and bias to bring about mind set and behavioral change
i. In-person mentoring session at least once a week for 1 â 2 hours on an ongoing basis for at least 1 year (typically 40 academic weeks).
ii. Such sessions will be focused on guiding and nurturing students in Atal Tinkering Labs for problem formulation, finding solutions to common problems faced in day to day life, and finally tinkering on ideas converting them into scalable solutions.
iii. Reasonable availability to help students on the portal developed for Mentor India, with typical expected response time of 72 hours from the selected mentors
iv. Provide support and review specific innovation projects. Give constructive feedback to school management/ individual students to allow further improvement at regular intervals.
v. Introduce students to relevant extended community / networks.
vi. Reasonable participation in social media forums organized by Atal Tinkering Labs.
vii. Support the school in reaching out to communities in neighboring areas.
viii. Help the schools to arrange for sessions in the lab in after school hours or in camp mode or during vacations or on weekends (based on mutual availability of selected mentors and students).
Atal Innovation Mission will work with the corporations / institutions to finalise suitable mode of engagement with Atal Tinkering Labs and Mentor India. All such agreement will be captured in a Statement of Intent duly signed by the corporate / institution and Atal Innovation Mission
1. Digital certificate of recognition from Atal Innovation Mission
2. Honour board for top mentors: India wide and at company level
3. Meet and greet with prominent dignitaries
4. Breakfast meeting with CEO of NITI Aayog / Mission Director of Atal Innovation Mission
5. Invitation to Government of India events
6. Opportunity to experience state-of-the-art equipment in Atal Tinkering Labs
Mentor India is a strategic nation building initiative to engage leaders who can guide and mentor students in 900+ Atal Tinkering Labs that Atal Innovation Mission has established across India. We are looking for leaders who can engage on a regular basis in one or more such labs and enable students to experience, learn and practice future skills such as design and computational thinking.
Atal Tinkering Labs are dedicated works spaces where students (Class 6th to Class 12th) learn innovation skills and develop ideas that will go on to transform India. The labs are powered to acquaint students with state-of-the-art equipment such as 3D printers, robotics & electronics development tools, IoT & sensors etc.
The lab activities are designed to spur the spark of creativity, and go beyond regular curriculum and text book learning. The labs will let students explore skills of future such as design and computational thinking, adaptive learning and artificial intelligence.
NITI Aayogâs Atal Innovation Mission, Government of Indiaâs flagship program to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in India, is setting up the Atal Tinkering Labs across India. Atal Innovation Mission has / is in the process of setting up 900+ such labs across India and aims to have 2,000 such labs by end of 2017.
The Atal Tinkering Labs are being established in schools which are passionate about science and innovation â government as well as private. Each selected school is provided a grant-in-aid that includes a one-time establishment cost of Rs. 10 lakh and operational expenses of Rs. 10 lakh for a maximum period of 5 years. Additional support is also provided by creating resources which will guide schools on concepts of tinkering and the key elements of successfully implementing an Atal Tinkering Lab on the ground.
Mentor India is aimed at maximizing the impact of Atal Tinkering Labs, possibly the biggest disruption in formal education globally. We are looking to engage leaders who will nurture and guide the students in the Atal Tinkering Labs. These labs are non-prescriptive by nature, and mentors are expected to be enablers rather than instructors.
A mentor, as a part of Mentor India program, is a person / organization / entity who will engage with one or more schools equipped Atal Tinkering Labs on an ongoing basis and provide volunteer services in the form of guest lectures, hands-on training and guidance, support to student projects, guidance in learning opportunities and any other mentoring support as requested by the school
We are looking for corporates / professionals / academicians / students etc. who are keen to contribute to nation building. Some of the attributes that are desirable in a prospective mentor are:
i. Understand and identify with the impact of Atal Tinkering Labs
ii. Keen to work with the Atal Innovation Mission on a volunteer basis
iii. Believe innovation is key to Indiaâs growth and keen to contribute towards this cause
iv. Comfortable working with students from Class 6th to Class 12th
v. Background in technology is desirable, but not mandatory. Key is to have an innovative bend of mind, and keenness to learn and guide
vi. Interested in inspiring young impressionable minds
We are looking for mentors who can contribute in one or more of the following areas:
i. Technical Knowhow: building prototypes etc.
ii. Innovation and Design: inculcating solution oriented approach
iii. Inspirational: leadership and self-motivation
iv. Business and Entrepreneurship: encourage ideas and team building
v. Be a sounding board / guide
vi. Help break stereotypes and biases
Atal Innovation Mission will be selecting multiple mentors from different backgrounds including technology, innovation, business etc. to inspire young students to innovate. We understand that all mentors might not be an expert on the equipment available in the Atal Tinkering Labs, however, they should be aware of the potential of the various technology solutions that can be developed using the Atal Tinkering Lab equipment. They should be able to discuss with students the various problems our Indian society is facing across multiple themes, and motivate students to develop solutions to these community problems. They need to align themselves with the mission of an Atal Tinkering Lab, and are encouraged to go through all the Atal Tinkering Labs related resources available on Atal Innovation Mission website.
Each Atal Tinkering Lab is managed by an Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge who are being trained with various aspects of these equipment. The Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge is the primary source of knowledge dissemination on these equipment. Furthermore, the students and Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge are also provided DIY modules on these equipment.
We are looking for mentors who are keen to learn new ideas and concepts and then guide the students. To this end, Atal Innovation Mission will have a formal induction program, which will include functional training for these equipment, for the mentors before the mentors start engaging with the Atal Tinkering Labs.
The prospective mentors, at the time of application, will identify if they are applying as an individual or as a part of a group of employees of corporations / institutions that have partnered with Mentor India.
Individual engagement will include regular in-person sessions at the selected Atal Tinkering Lab(s) to work with the students. Group engagement will be driven by the designated point of contact of the partner corporation / institution.
The selected mentors are expected to engage with the selected Atal Tinkering Lab(s) on a regular basis. We expect the selected mentors to spend 1 â 2 hours per week during / after school hours. Furthermore, an ongoing commitment for at least one year with the school is necessary (will typically involve ~40 weeks of academic operations in a year). Selected mentors will be to sign a commitment document to this effect.
We also expect mentors to interact with the mentors through a portal developed for Mentor India. These interactions could include supporting and reviewing specific innovation projects, support in innovation competitions, and community outreach. We expect a time commitment of ~30 â 40 hours in a year for such interactions.
Selected mentors are expected to volunteer their time and services strictly on a pro-bono basis. However, Atal Innovation Mission would like to recognize the work done by mentors through the following proposed recognitions:
i. Digital certificate of recognition from Atal Innovation Mission
ii. Honour board for top mentors: India wide and at company level
iii. Meet and greet with prominent dignitaries
iv. Breakfast meeting with CEO of NITI Aayog / Mission Director of Atal Innovation Mission
v. Invitation to Government of India events
vi. Opportunity to experience state-of-the-art equipment in Atal Tinkering Labs
The in-person interactions with students will strictly take place inside an Atal Tinkering Labs / school premises only, in presence of an Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge / designated school teacher. No mentor will be permitted to meet or take any school students outside the school premises without the explicit permission of the school principal and the Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge.
The interaction between students and mentors through the portal developed for Mentor India will also be moderated / monitored for suitability of content and language. We would discourage selected mentors to connect with students of Atal Tinkering Labs outside the Mentor India recommended communications channels
Atal Innovation Mission would encourage you to visit the Atal Tinkering Labs if you can. However, given the large number of applications expected, Atal Innovation Mission canât facilitate your visit to these labs
Atal Innovation Mission is actively engaging with corporations / institutions to work together on Atal Tinkering Labs and Mentor India. Atal Innovation Mission would like corporations / institutions to adopt Atal Tinkering Labs. We have received commitments from several corporations / institutions and have got more than 80 Atal Tinkering Labs already adopted.
Adoption of an Atal Tinkering Lab typically involves the following:
i. (Optional) Augment basic infrastructure in Atal Tinkering Labs with instruments / facilities / hardware of your choice
ii. Designate a resource person for the Atal Tinkering Labs, who will support the Atal Tinkering Labs In-Charge to make the tinkering lab successful (e.g. teacher training, student workshops etc.)
iii. Manage mentor activities of Atal Tinkering Labs end to end, working directly with Atal Tinkering Labs Advisory Committee in schools
iv. Minimal oversight / supervision from Atal Innovation Mission / NITI Aayog
v. Mentoring activities done on a recurring basis, with min 8 - 10 hrs per week during / after school hours (on a company wide basis)
vi. Ongoing commitment for 1 â 2 years: ~40 weeks of school
If your corporation / institution would like to partner with Atal Innovation Mission to adopt Atal Tinkering Labs, please reach out to us at md-aim@gov.in with âAdoption of Atal Tinkering Labs�? as subject.
We encourage college / university students in their penultimate year of graduation to apply for Mentor India.
All individual applications for Mentor India will be accepted online.
For individuals applying for Mentor India program, the deadline for application is 30 Sep 2017. The application is on a rolling basis, and the preference for selected Atal Tinkering Labs will be allocated on a first-come-first-serve basis. Hence, we encourage the prospective mentors to apply early to ensure they get their choice of Atal Tinkering Labs allocated.
After the prospective mentors have submitted the application, the Atal Innovation Mission team will review the application, including reference checks. The Atal Innovation Mission team may reach out to the prospective mentor for a follow-up telephonic conversation as well.
Safety and well-being of the students is paramount to us at Atal Innovation Mission. As such, we want to make sure only the people with right intentions are interacting with these young impressionable minds. We have to ask for reference checks to ensure the suitability of prospective mentors.
Once you have been selected as a mentor for Mentor India, and you choose to accept, you will be expected to attend a full-day induction program (in-person / online, exact details to be communicated later).
After the induction, the mentors will be connected with the respective Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge. The mentors will have to coordinate with the Atal Tinkering Lab In-Charge for the mentoring sessions. We expect the mentoring session to start from 15 October 2017 onwards.
We at Atal Innovation Mission can not guarantee that you will get the Atal Tinkering Lab of your choice. Hence, we ask you to select up to 5 Atal Tinkering Labs of your choice. We will reconfirm allocations with you before we get you started as a mentors.
We strongly encourage all prospective mentors to dedicate one year towards this initiative. We believe maximum impact of Atal Tinkering Labs can only be achieved by regular ongoing mentor interactions.
Hence, we typically would not accept applicants who will not be able to dedicate at least a year for Mentor India. However, if you have a strong justification, please do let us know and we will evaluate the applications on a case-by-case basis.