Focus of KEI is on education and we have various programs all of which cater to needy individuals. Many of our scholars are orphans and all our scholars belong to families that have financial difficulties. For instance 90% of our scholars come from families with less than $150/month household income. KEI does not take a stance on religious matters and asks our donors to make decisions based on their research or consultation with individuals that are experts in such fields. We can provide detailed information about our programs as and when needed in order to help you make that decision. If there are particular questions that we can provide information on that can enable you to decide, please feel free to reach out to us at info@kashmirei.org

KEI is an exempt charity organization under the 501(c)(3) act of the IRS. Your donations are fully exempt to the extent allowed by IRS under this code.

KEI currently does not have the infrastructure to send any in-kind donations to Kashmir. However, if the donors can arrange getting the goods to Kashmir on their own, we will consider the in-kind contributions, currently limited to computers and educational materials only. Please contact us if you are interested in making in-kind contributions.

KEI is not affiliated with any religious or political organization. However, KEI will welcome help and support from all entities and individuals as long as the help and support is unconditional and does not violate any law (including the US State and Federal Laws, International Laws, KEI Articles of Incorporation, Bylaws) or the core principles of KEI.

KEI USA and KEI Kashmir are two independent entities and are governed by their respective local and federal laws and regulations. Both have their own separate financial accounting procedures. Both organizations, however, share a common vision of promoting education in Kashmir. As such both organizations may collaborate and share learnings on how to best serve the needs of the intended audience. However, none of the KEI Kashmir projects are currently funded by KEI USA.

KEI USA is a non-profit 501(c)(3) charity under the IRS code and is governed by US federal and local laws and your donations are tax-exempt within the USA. All donations are to be made in the USA. KEI USA cannot accept any donations on behalf of KEI Kashmir and vice versa.

We provide tax receipts to all our donors for them to claim it on their tax returns. We email or mail the tax receipts depending on whether we have the email or the postal address of the donor. Most of the receipts are sent prior to the tax filing season in Jan-Feb timeframe for the previous tax year. However, sometimes the checks may not have your correct addresses. In case you have not received your receipt, please contact the KEI Treasurer at treasurer@kashmirei.org and we will be happy to resend it to you.

We are glad that you are asking this question and we value your donations. You can write checks payable to Kashmir Education Initiative and mail them out to our US address at 113 West Plain St, Wayland, MA 01778, USA. Donations can also be securely made online using all major credit cards, bank accounts, or PayPal accounts on this link.

Kashmiri society in general and its educational institutions, in particular, have been severely affected by the conflict in the region. This special humanitarian situation needs special attention. The people of KEI are associated with Kashmir either by virtue of being from that part of the world or by being sympathetic to the conflict in Kashmir especially on the education of Kashmiri children. All the members have extensive experience and knowledge of that area.

The teams in USA and Kashmir are comprised of individuals of high integrity and credibility. Further, they come with a wealth of experience in management and areas of expertise that are critical to the success of the program. You can check our profiles on our People page (Team & Vision menu). We have a sense of responsibility towards the community and a desire to make a difference. The organization is run in a completely transparent manner with operational and financial details open to the public.

KEI has maintained excellent financial performance as measured by standard metrics like Fiscal Performance (ratio of revenue to expense), Program Service Expense (ratio of charitable program expenses to the overall expenses), and Fundraising efficiency (ratio of fundraising expense to total contributions). Since its inception, KEI has maintained a fiscal performance value greater than 1 (BBB recommends > 1) and a fundraising efficiency of less than 2% (BBB recommends < 35%). In addition, our program service expense ratio has been well above 90% (BBB recommends> 65%) and is projected to remain healthy over the next five years even as we expand our programs and services. These outstanding ratios indicate that KEI is a very efficient and reliable non-profit charity.

Within USA all our financial records are public under the IRS code and we have annual independent audits to ensure financial compliance. KEI follows a policy of full public disclosure and will have financial statements available to the public. Within Kashmir, KEI partners with various organization on the ground that run our projects (such Iqbal Memorial Trust, HELP Foundation etc.). These organizations are required to maintain full financial books. Besides regular audits from local authorities, KEI USA reviews the financial audits of al the projects that are funded by our organization.

KEI does not offer scholarships specifically for religious education. Some KEI scholars might attend schools where some religious education is part of the curriculum - as is the case with many mainstream schools in Kashmir. In determining the beneficiaries of its projects, KEI does not discriminate on the basis of religion, gender, or political orientation.

The scholarship selection criteria follow a very transparent and scientific approach. Each Scholarship program has its own selection criteria, the main criteria of selection are financial need and academic merit of a student.

We are glad that you are asking this question and we need all the help we can get. You can volunteer in various projects and areas of organizational functioning. Please fill out the volunteer form, after clicking "Get Involved" on the menu above, and tell us your interests - we will match you accordingly.

The level of commitment depends on your availability. Once we hear from your about your interests and the approximate number of hours you are willing to commit, we will match you accordingly.

KEI is a data driven organization and we constantly evaluate our programs with well defined metrics. This enables us to make changes, tailor our programs or sometimes even stop them. As an example, we funded projects that were specifically needed during the Covid pandemic when all the education went virtual but were discontinued once the educational institutions opened up. KEI reserves the right to make modifications to its portfolio, start new and stop existing projects as and when required within legal terms dictated by the federal US laws and laws of the State of Massachusetts.

Our directors, volunteers, donors, and often beneficiaries propose a new project that they consider aligns with the vision and mission of KEI. The project is proposed using a project proposal template available on request to anyone. The project then goes through a transparent approval process which consists of a comments period, discussions, and then a final vote by the Board.