Announcement: Open World Cause Mission in Kenya
OWC 2017 Kenya Project Press Release and Partner Announcement
The Open World Cause is proud to announce our 2017 initiative in Kenya. We are partnered with an educational pioneer named Livingstone Kegode, and we could not be more proud to be working with such an outstanding individual. Livingstone’s work in Kenya can be read in a write-up here, and his school’s facebook page can be found here. For his work, Livingstone won Microsoft’s prestigious Most Inspirational Skype Master Teacher of the Year.
In 2015, Livingstone started HIP Africa to help educate impoverished children and community members in a rural area in Kenya. HIP (Hope Initiative Programs) is a registered “community based organization” (CBO) in western Kenya. The goal of HIP Africa is to improve the educational, social, vocational, and medical needs of the local community through its programs. The first program Livingstone started under HIP Africa was the HIP Academy, a primary school serving children from approximately 5-11 in age. The students of HIP arise from poor families. Some are orphans, others are being raised by surviving relatives. HIP plays a vital role in helping provide food, educate and providing clean water to 68 local children.
In 2016, the country of Kenya changed its policy for school zoning standards and are requiring HIP to build three new classrooms, two washrooms and fencing to continue its operations, a cost that runs to $14,000. Livingstone aspires to keep his school in operation so he can give his students a global education, and it is the goal of the Open World Cause to help make Livingstone’s mission a reality. We are working to fundraise the $14,000 needed to help save HIP Africa for the children attending the school, in addition, we aim to hire a new teacher who practices contemporary classroom pedagogies, provide technology that allows HIP students to build international classroom partnerships, and establish new programs led by the qualified teacher we plan to hire. To execute our objectives, we have appointed four advisers who will oversee our Kenyan operations. We begin with Jacqueline Jumbe-Kuhara. Jacqui founded Lifting the Barriers (LIBA), A CBO in Kenya that educates impoverished children and provides vital support to young women so they can live healthy and independent lives. Jacqui was a finalist in the 2015 Global Teacher Prize, and works with Kenya’s Teacher Service Commission. Jacqui serves on a board that vets qualified teachers for schools serving vulnerable populations and is eager to help find qualified teachers for the students at the HIP Academy. We are also proud to be joined by Melissa Collum, Melissa won a Fulbright Award for her educational work in East Africa, has taught in Kenya, and has served on a U.N. Council for Education in Rwanda. Our effort will also be guided by Michael Soskil, the 2017 Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year and winner of 2016 Global Teacher Prize. Michael worked in Kenya with Livingstone in 2014 and is eager to help start cross-cultural partnerships between HIP and schools in the U.S. Lastly, we are proud to be overseen by Sue Levine, a Fulbright Distinguished Teacher from Atlanta, Georgia. Sue has worked with Livingstone since the founding of HIP Africa and is responsible for partnering the school with Open World and other organizations that have helped keep the school in operation. We are honored to have such distinguished individuals advising us on this effort. With their expertise, we are confident this campaign can provide the critical support that HIP’s students deserve.
We would be honored if you considered joining our mission for the children in Kenya.
Sincerely,
The Open World Cause Team