Support girls' education and end FGM in Kenya

In late 2023, our Kakenya Centers for Excellence (KCE) students in both eighth and twelfth grade sat for their mandated national exams. These exams — the Kenya Certificate for Primary Education (KCPE) and the Kenya Certificate for Secondary Education (KCSE) — are critical for the high school and university placements of our eighth and twelfth graders, respectively. Not only did all seniors graduate, but the eighth graders scored third highest in our organizational category! This is a remarkable achievement given that only 58% of girls on average complete primary school where we work and less than 1 in 4 finish high school (2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey), compared to our boarding schools, which have 100% primary and high school graduation rates. We are so proud of all our students for the work and dedication they put into preparing for these exams! 

At our boarding schools, our students receive high-quality instruction in five core areas: languages, math, science, technical skills, and humanities. In addition to the government mandated curriculum, we also provide peer mentorship opportunities and leadership and life-skills training to help them become confident young women and agents of change in their communities. Not only do we promote their academic lives, but we are also committed to the professional development of our students. Over school holidays last month, we had four students volunteer at the local health center, sub-county hospital, and even our own nonprofit offices. These volunteer placements support students’ career interests, while also providing important professional experience, which is critical given Kenya’s ongoing high youth unemployment. 

We also partnered with a peer nonprofit called I’m Worth Defending to hold self-defense workshops for students on our school campuses during the December holidays. Girls are particularly vulnerable during school breaks in rural Kenya, when the time away from school means they can be pressured into the harmful practices of female genital mutilation and forced early marriage or exposed to food insecurity and abuse. This highlights the need for a comprehensive approach to education that goes beyond mere class attendance. In addition to the self-defense workshops, our students receive training in sexual and reproductive health, public speaking, and leadership during these holiday breaks as part of our holistic model of education and growth. 

Finally, we are excited to share the first edition of our annual student magazine, Golden Voices. Created by our high school’s Journalism Club, the magazine offers a creative outlet for students to share their voices, perspectives, and artwork. Kakenya’s Dream exists to embolden girls to raise their voices in a society that often silences them. This student-driven magazine is a powerful example of what that work looks like. 

From May to early August, our students completed the second term of the 2023 academic year. Alongside their regular classroom instruction, the girls participated in extracurricular activities like interschool sports games, music competitions, and scout training. They also went on field trips, visiting a variety of places over the summer, including Kisimu City, Nakuru City, and the Maasai Mara, where they witnessed the great migration of wildebeest and zebra. Several classes also went to Nairobi and toured the Houses of Parliament, the national Meteorological Department, and the Bomas of Kenya, a cultural center that features replicas of traditional homesteads. 

For many, it was their first time being in the nation’s capital or even traveling outside their home village. Most of our students come from a primarily Maasai area where common livelihoods focus on pastoralism or subsistence farming. In a region that sees girls as primarily wives and mothers and devalues their education, these trips help our students expand their understanding of what girls can achieve and career possibilities in industries like government, science, and engineering. 

A new national curriculum, the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), has been slowly rolling out across the country since 2017. In January, it was implemented for the seventh grade for the 2023 school year. Kenyan schools were divided into primary (grades four to eight) and secondary (grades nine to twelve). The new structure adds a third division: a junior high (grades seven to nine).  To comply with the changes, junior high schools were established at both of our boarding schools, KCE I and KCE II. To support the student body expansion at KCE II from the new junior high, we broke ground on a dining hall in mid-June. The new hall will not only provide our growing student body with a safe, weather-ready place to eat, but will also serve as a multi-purpose center for student activities, like assemblies, graduation ceremonies, theater performances, and indoor games. We also hope to host parent meetings and outreach events in the hall to further deepen our community engagement efforts. Once completed, it will have a kitchen, a storage room, and a dining area for students and staff with a capacity of approximately 500-600 people. 

With the final school term of 2023 underway, our current eighth grade class at KCE I is busy studying for their national exams in December and are receiving extra academic support and test preparation. In June, they took a joint practice exam with four other schools and as a result of their hard work, performed the best! At KCE II, our Form 4 (twelfth grade) Class is also undergoing intense preparation for their standardized exams. In July, we hosted several exam facilitators to provide guidance to familiarize the girls on the topics that the exam covers. Both classes are hard at work preparing for these intense exams, and we hope you join us in wishing them success!

We are deeply grateful for people like you in the GlobalGiving community. Your continued support means that hundreds of girls can stay in school with their academic, mental, and physical needs fully met. Not only are you providing vulnerable girls with a safe, nurturing environment to learn, but you are also ensuring that they have everything they need to flourish holistically. As 2023 comes to an end, we look forward to sharing the impact of your generosity in the months ahead!