By Sallyanne Atieno

Yusuf enrolled in the NRCF program in 2018 when he was in fourth grade. In the Kawangware area, he lives with his mother,  two brothers, uncle, and a cousin. His mother was and still is a casual laborer, doing odd jobs like washing clothes or cleaning other people’s houses to make ends meet. This makes meeting even basic needs for the family of six difficult. This made it difficult to cover Yusuf’s school fees, and he was frequently sent home.

Yusuf enrolled at Jagiet Academy after joining the program. He was a hardworking student, as evidenced by his academic performance. He received 339 points out of a possible 500 on his KCPE exams in 2022. This performance earned him a spot at St.John Tala High School, a boys high school in Machakos County. He started high school this year and has already raved about it. He describes it as a very good school with hardworking students and eager teachers who are ready to assist the students .

His favorite subject is Mathematics, and he aspires to be the school president before graduating from high school in 2026. He also wishes to study engineering or architecture at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology. As part of his extracurricular activities, he has joined a dance group and the school tennis team.

Yusuf is optimistic about getting good grades in high school and is looking forward to meeting new people and making the most of his four years there.

Transform a life today

By Sallyanne Atieno

The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted the Kenyan education calendar for over a year. Normalcy in the school calendar has been restored since the beginning of this year. According to the revised school dates, mid-term break for all students began on March 16th and will end on March 19th, giving students a three-day break.

This means that both our primary and secondary students will be at home. We have a number of activities for the students to keep them engaged. First, both primary and secondary students will be writing letters to their sponsors. Students will visit the newly constructed Elimu Hub, where they will have access to a computer and can log in to their portals to update their sponsors on their school and family progress.

Second, we have our regular Saturday program schedule. We will have a variety of activities planned for them, including yoga and light exercises, rock paper scissors relays, brain teasers, puzzle and crossword puzzles, and trivia debates, and have lunch together among other things. The Saturday program will also allow the staff to interact with the students one on one. The Elimu Hub will also allow students to complete their assignments in the library. They can obtain educational reference materials as well as a quiet location to work on personal projects.

When the mid-term break ends, we will provide basic necessities as well as transportation funds to the primary and secondary boarding students. We hope that the students will make the most of their three-day midterm break.

Support our fill a trunk campaign for our high school and some primary students that are in boarding school. 

By Sallyanne Atieno

I am Latifah, an 18 years old Ngong Road Children’s Foundation (NRCF) 2022 high school graduate. I was born and raised in the Ngando area where I still live up to date. I grew up with my 3 siblings and we were privileged enough to be raised by both parents as most children in my neighborhood are either raised by a single parent or a guardian. However, life growing up was challenging. My parents were casual laborers thus making it almost impossible for them to give us a comfortable life, let alone provide basic needs.

Luckily, I got the opportunity to join the NRCF program in 2012 while I was in grade 2. I was schooling at Nelson Mandela before joining the program and so once I joined, I did not have to change schools. Nonetheless, there was a huge difference then because I could stay in school throughout without having to be sent home due to lack of school fees. Every school need was also being catered for and so my academic grades really improved. In 2012, I was elected as the school head girl, a position I held until my final year in primary school. I was a disciplined student as well as hardworking which made me a good fit for the position. I really loved being a head girl as I got the opportunity to exercise good leadership skills towards other students and lead them by example.

After sitting for my Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE), I scored 383 out of 500 marks. This earned me a slot at St. Joseph Girls High School, an extra-county girls boarding school in Kitale. I was excited to join high school especially because it was a new environment for me since I had not schooled outside of Nairobi county. While in high school, I also had 2 leadership positions; I was a dining hall captain and also an entertainment captain. I am really good at dancing and so it was easy for me to get the entertainment captains’ position. Apart from the leadership positions, I was also involved in a co-curricular activity. I was part of the drama club and part of the team that represented my school in different competition levels. 

I sat for my Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) in 2022 and when the results came out, I had scored a B plain! This made me the top-performing female student for the high school class of 2022 in the program. I aspire to join the University of Nairobi and take a Bachelors degree course in Law. I have always had an interest in law studies since I was in primary school. I would also like to venture into arts and graphic design when I am done with my course.

I would like to thank my sponsor Chris for sponsoring me and giving me the chance to pursue my education and NRCF for making sure that I maximize the opportunity. I hope to succeed in my university studies, get a job and transform my life and that of my family.     

Transform a life today

 

By Sallyanne Atieno

The high school graduates of 2022 were taken through life skills and Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) trainings from the 20th of February to the 3rd. These are part of the programs developed by the organization to help the students to develop basic social skills as well as to promote their awareness in their personal and physical well-being.

We had 26 out of 28 students attend the programs, which represents a 94% turnout. The purpose of this training was to teach the students general and self-management skills, basic social skills and skills related to career development as they transition to higher learning institutions. 

During the 9 day training period, the students were taken through various topics which included but not limited to; effective communication and listening skills, stress and conflict management, emotional intelligence, CV and cover letter writing, interview preparation and personal branding. At the end of the life skills training, the students were each given a career booklet from which they were to research and prepare to attend a mock job interview for their respective careers. They were required to dress professionally and have their CVs and cover letter ready for the job interview that was being conducted by their Case Managers. This was a great way for them to familiarize themselves with how job interviews are conducted and test their skills in CV and cover letter writing.

The Sexual Reproductive Health training on the other hand was conducted by the NRCF Youth Peer Providers (YPPs) that have been trained and certified by Planned Parenthood. The training was conducted by two YPPs and two staff members were present to oversee the session. The objective of this training was to create more awareness on sexual health matters as well as to make them understand and learn how to deal with the physiology of their bodies.

Some of the topics that were covered include; use of contraceptives, safe sex and consent, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), early pregnancy, abortion, and Gender Based Violence (GBV). During both trainings, the students were provided with tea and snacks during the break in between the sessions. Proper hygiene and sanitation protocols were also strictly observed.

Our special gratitude goes to both the US and Kenya teams for the support granted so far. We would also like to thank the Rotary clubs of Kikuyu and Minneapolis for the grant in ensuring the training is conducted. Last but not least, we appreciate the students for taking the time to attend these valuable training sessions.