Daraja Academy is proud to be one of many schools in Kenya who are working towards seeing every girl educated from primary school through university. But with the recent influx of Kenyan girls’ schools, what makes Daraja Academy unique? Here’s how the Daraja method stands out:
1. Meeting material needs first
We believe the boarding experience is necessary because it fully eliminates the stresses of material poverty that can prevent a girl from learning. Before arriving at Daraja, many of the girls spent their time fetching water, performing household chores and looking after younger siblings. The comprehensive scholarship that Daraja girls receive covers their academics, room & board, healthcare, and counseling. The counseling program is critical to the girls’ success as it allows them to deal with deep emotional trauma that they have experienced. A girl can’t reach her potential if her material, physical, and emotional needs are not met first.
2. Peace Building
Aside from meeting physical and emotional needs, the boarding experience is important because it brings together girls from many different tribes, regions, and religions across Kenya. Daraja girls cross cultural lines to learn together, and to learn from one another. Representatives from 32 out of Kenya’s 42 tribes currently live together happily at Daraja Academy. Daraja aims to create a strong network of girls who see past each other’s differences and are bonded by their mutual desire for education and the betterment of their communities. When Daraja girls graduate, they join a growing sisterhood of leadership.
3. Bridging the Gap: Preparation for college and career
In Kenya, primary school is mostly free, and the government provides university loans for high performers on the KCSE (Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education) exams. Unfortunately, costs associated with secondary schools can prove prohibitive to families living in material poverty, resulting in many girls being unable to take their exams. The Daraja academic program is designed to maximize each girl’s performance on her KCSE exams, so that every girl has the option to attend college. Our program is proving increasingly successful every year: 25 out of 26 girls in the 2016 graduating class obtained grades high enough to secure government loans for college!
4. Transition
The Daraja Transition program is a 5-month “gap year” between secondary school and university. The program was implemented to give the Daraja girls further training and life skills in a period that normally would have been spent waiting at home. The first three months are spent in the classroom, where the girls continue to take W.I.S.H. classes, as well as computer skills, personal finance, home economics, and business. The final two months are spent at internships at businesses, organizations, and schools in the Daraja community. This program is another step in Daraja’s dedication to continue to support the girls even after they graduate high school.
5. W.I.S.H. (Women of Integrity, Strength, and Hope)
All Daraja girls take weekly classes from our W.I.S.H. curriculum. The first two years of the program focus on inwardly helping the girls identify and understand their strengths, build their self-esteem, and deal with traumatic issues from the past. The final two years focus on the girls’ relationship with the world, helping the girls see themselves as leaders in their communities. In addition, girls attend classes in sex education, public speaking, and career development. The W.I.S.H. program is a holistic approach to helping a girl reach her full potential as a student, woman, and leader.
6. Unlocking ‘Agents of Change’
Daraja girls “pay” for their education by performing 30 hours of community service each year. We ask the girls to do this so that they practice their leadership skills, pay forward some of the lessons they’ve learned at Daraja, and realize the importance of community development. Ultimately, Daraja want the girls to see themselves as “Agents of Change” within their communities. Daraja girls take on the responsibility of improving their communities and addressing any injustices that they see in the world.
The Daraja method provides all her material needs and offers a progressive education, but it also aims to empower her to accomplish her long-term goals and become a leader in her community. A Daraja girl remains a Daraja girl even after she leaves the classroom: the lessons she learns here will remain relevant throughout her life.
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