By Dr. Aimee Bessire | Founder and Director, Africa Schoolhouse
Thanks to your generosity, the Milembe School Dormitory Compound has positively impacted the lives of so many girls. Girls are truly thriving! Mariam said: “Living on campus has changed our lives. We are now getting Division 1 and 2 on our national exams [the highest grades], because we can focus on our studies here at school.” This is a big change for the girls, who say they did not have time to study when they lived at home, where, culturally, girls are expected to do all the household work, including the cooking, cleaning, and caring for younger siblings. Now at the dormitory compound, their performance is improving, and the girls have a new rhythm of daily life.
On a typical school day, girls return to the dormitory compound after classes and gather in the Dining Hall. The open-air building has become the meeting place and a favorite spot to share experiences and to do homework together. The girls have said that living on campus, they are now able to devote up to 3 times as much focus to their studies as before. Girls sit around the large tables, each doing their own work and sometimes tutoring and supporting each other.
On the weekends, the girls study and spend time relaxing and having fun with friends. On a typical Saturday, girls may be seen doing their laundry together, ironing school uniforms, reading, studying, playing ball on the compound lawn, or gathering around a copy of Fema, a Tanzanian magazine that focuses on female empowerment and gender equality. Dorm life creates an atmosphere where studying is fun rather than a chore, because there is now more time to complete assignments.
One of the girls, Jacqui, said that other girls want to move to the dormitory compound. She asked Africa Schoolhouse to build another dorm. Our dream is to empower more girls in completing their education—we hope that one day all girls in Tanzania may finish secondary school. Thank you for all you have done to support the girls at Milembe School!
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