Growing Schools in Africa provides support for grassroots educational initiatives in Kenya. Most Africans live in conditions of extreme poverty and have to survive on less than one dollar a day. It is our belief that education is a means of developing economies and infrastructure and thereby improving the standard of living of millions.

The objectives of Growing Schools in Africa are threefold:

1. To increase awareness of the plight of children in the developing world.
2. To provide a safe forum for the transmission of resources directly to the beneficiaries.
3. To organize opportunities for volunteers to visit Kenya and offer assistance at the schools.

Presently two schools are being supported. These are Brother Beausang Catholic Center on the outskirts of Nairobi and St. George's elementary school near Eldoret in western Kenya.

Jerry Dwyer visited these schools in 2007 and his observations are described in the Kenya-Reflections article. Pictures with captions from Beausang and St. George's can be viewed at Beausang Photos and St. George's Photos respectively. The general state of education in Kenya is described in this 2007 education article.

A further visit took place in 2010. Laura Sefcik and Carrie Loftis joined Jerry on this trip and their observations are described here. They observed some positive changes with improved math scores and a very strong educational ethos at St. George's. Major needs were identified in the teaching of Math at Brother Beausang and the teaching of English at St. George's. Fundraising to provide teachers to meet these needs is now in progress. We will also seek sponsorship for Internet access to both schools. This will enable a twinning with schools in the US to include e-mail contact between both schools and thus enhance the standards of written communication in English. 

Earlier fundraising managed to raise about $5000 for St. George’s school. This support helped to provide food for one year for 250 students as well as pay the salaries of extra teachers of English and Math.

All aspects of the organization are handled by volunteers. Any donations are sent directly to the schools. There is no added cost or any expenses deducted. We have school administrators or volunteers on the ground in Kenya who ensure that funds are spent appropriately. All developments will be reported on this website.

Several projects are underway at both schools and we will continue to monitor those over the next year. Further trips to Kenya are planned and volunteers should contact us at any time. Further details of the projects and opportunities to volunteer may be obtained by following the links above or by contacting Jerry at jerry.dwyer@ttu.edu or 001-806-787-9176.

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