Kyaninga Inclusive Model School

Eunice’s Story  

The need for holistic, wrap-around care for children with disabilities and their families could not be more perfectly exemplified than by the story of Eunice.

Eunice is a 12-year-old girl who came to the attention of the Kyaninga Child Development Centre (KCDC) team when she was about to be excluded from yet another school due to her violence towards other children. The school had judged Eunice to be ‘mentally disturbed’, a simple diagnosis which her mother agreed with. It had been decided by the family that the cause of Eunice’s mental disturbance was a childhood accident where Eunice’s older sister had pushed her over causing her to bang her head. Her sister, now 13, had grown up in the tragic belief that she was entirely responsible for her little sister’s aggression, lack of mental capacity and sadness. Running alongside this is the financial hardship, ostracization and inevitable sense of shame that tragically goes with having a disabled child in Uganda. It is not difficult to imagine the enormous guilt she must have carried and the inevitable blame felt by her parents.

It took just one minute for KCDC’s team of teachers and therapists to diagnose Eunice with Down syndrome—a genetic condition caused by a random error in cell division that results in an extra copy of chromosome 21. There’s no one to blame; it’s simply a matter of biology. Yet, Eunice’s family has struggled tragically under the misconception that they were directly responsible for her challenges.

Since KCDC became involved with Eunice’s family, their lives have completely transformed. Eunice now attends Kyaninga Inclusive Model school where she is thriving in our Special Support Centre.  She is receiving occupational therapy to support her to become more independent and counselling to help her speak about her frustrations.  She is a different child to the aggressive, sullen, sad and lonely child who joined us at KIMS just 6 months ago. Eunice’s mother attended our Down Syndrome Awareness Day at the Therapy and Rehabilitation Centre, where she saw other children with Down syndrome for the very first time. Meeting other mothers helped her realize she wasn’t alone in her journey, providing a sense of community and understanding.

The construction of a purpose-built school at the Centre of Excellence will create the type of supportive community where, on one site, families such as Eunice’s can access the holistic services necessary for their children to thrive. It will:

• act as the new headquarters for the organisation, providing purpose-built accessible facilities
• allow the Kyaninga Inclusive Model School to continue to model best practice whilst providing education to a greater number of children
• provide a forum for parents of children with disabilities to meet, share stories and provide the support and companionship they so desperately need
• offer multiple therapy/treatment rooms to reduce waiting times and treat more children daily.
• Provide simple self-catered accommodation for long-distance families requiring specialised intensive therapy and longer-term rehabilitation services.
• have the capacity to host training workshops for teachers, healthcare and community workers, local leaders and other stakeholders.

Thank you!

Building our new school at the Centre of Excellence would remain an impossible dream without your ongoing support. Every contribution, no matter how small, brings us closer to our goal. Together, we can profoundly impact the lives of children and their families.

Thank you for your steadfast support and belief in our mission. Without your help, families like Eunice’s may never discover the immense potential she holds or embrace the bright future that awaits her.

Inclusive education has transformative effects for all involved. By enabling children who were previously excluded from education to learn alongside their typical peers, it fosters mutual benefit and emphasizes the strength found in differences rather than similarities. As Jesse Jackson aptly stated, “When everyone is included, everyone wins.”

 But one of the truly joyous aspects of Inclusive Education, which we hadn’t anticipated, was that magical realisiation that paradigms have shifted and true interdependence has become tangible. One of the most palpable demonstrations of this comes from witnessing those heart-warming moments where our children with disabilities, once solely recipients of help, becoming the helper …. Caitlyn, who has Down syndrome, reading to Sidney; Reagan, who has cerebral palsy, pushing Osbert (a typical learner) on the swing; Christopher who has speech and language difficulties and intellectual impairment, helping lift Abina from his wheelchair; and Akram who also has cerebral Palsy, helping Geoffrey put on his shoes. 

These events, which occur daily at Kyaninga Inclusive Model school (KIMS,) serve to shift mindsets and dismantle long-held attitudes and stigmatisation. But perhaps more importantly, imagine also the boost in confidence which when a child evolves from being perceived as helpless to being the helper - being in a position contribute positively to the well-being of others!

Inclusion is a mindset and unquestioning acceptance and respect should be the end result. “Children who learn together, learn to live together”(anon) and the children of KIMS will use their learning and experinces to sculpt a future which is truly equitable for all.