Why are EFAC students so exceptional?  

Article by Rod Van Sciver

Let's hear a big round of applause for the 2014 EFAC graduating class. The all-important KCSE test scores have been released (the equivalent to our SATs). Nationally 14% of the students, based on last year's qualification cutoff, scored high enough to qualify for admission with government aid to a public university, So how did our EFAC students do? Twice as well? Three times maybe?

No, how about 86%! An EFAC student is 6 TIMES more likely to gain public university access than the average student. That is called knocking it out of the park.

Is 2014 a one-off event? No - the class of 2013 was also 6 times more likely to gain acceptance. In 2012, because of lower than normal national achievement, the number was 11 times. Three years in a row convinces me.

So what is going on? It seems to me there are three explanations.

First, our team at ANU does a fantastic job of mentoring our students. They facilitate a four day workshop in August of each year, exposing the students to inspirational speakers, mentors, role playing and group breakout sessions. They use the workshops to build a sense of community and common purpose.

Each of our partner schools has an EFAC contact teacher to help our students address tough personal and academic issues. Volunteers from ANU visit each school each term to meet with the students and the contact teacher.

Second, we choose very competitive secondary schools with some of the most successful faculty and programs in Kenya. Good instruction produces good students.

And finally, we start with great ingredients. We select students based on performance on the KCPE, the primary school equivalent to the KCSE, and rank in class. All of our students are from humble backgrounds. All are smart and driven.

A case can be made that a smart and driven student from a humble background will beat his/her wealthier counterpart all day long. These children know where they come from and know where they are going. Not much is going to stand in their way.

You should be very proud of your student.   

Inaugural Education-to-Employment Workshop  

EFAC prepares for their first University and college graduates. The EFAC Kenyan team together with local business leaders from IBM, S.C. Johnson and Nestle, have developed a curriculum to bridge the gap between education and employment. In Kenya there is 40% unemployment but the local corporations are still struggling to find qualified employees. Youth unemployment is a global problem with different solutions for different parts of the world.

Welcome Class of 2019!  

In February, EFAC welcomed 39 Form One students into the EFAC community. The 25 girls and 14 boys who were awarded a scholarship all scored in the top of the country on their 8th grade exams and did very well in primary school.

All of these students have faced numerous hardships including lack of basic needs such as food and clothes. But each of them is now enrolled in a top-rated Kenyan boarding school with a brighter future ahead of them, thanks to the support of the EFAC community.

Benard Mwengi, an orphan from Kitui, was the top student in his primary school. His 8th grade teachers helped Bernard apply for an EFAC scholarship to make sure he would be able to attend high school. Bernard is currently in his first term at St. Mary's Boys Secondary School where he is doing very well.  

Catherine is the last born in a family of 5 children. She lived in a children's home until her mother relocated to a single room house. Catherine has a passion for music and athletics and was selected as "head girl" in her 8th grade class. Catherine attributes her high academic performance to the support of her mother.

Read more student stories on the Class of 2019 webpage. 

Welcome Katie Donnelly

Welcome Katie Donnelly as she joins the EFAC team as Development Director. Katie brings a decade of experience working at the intersection of education and international development programs. Her first experience was in Kenya as an undergraduate student. It was there that she developed a passion for the people and the region that has lead her back to East Africa many times to work with education and community development programs in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda. 

Most recently Katie worked with Saint Louis University as the inaugural program manager at the Center for Global Citizenship. Her non-profit and fundraising resume also includes jobs at Microfinancing Partners in Africa, The International Institute of Saint Louis, and Heifer International Tanzania. She has extensive experience leading field-based programs for National Geographic and Putney Student Travel.

Katie has a BA in Government from Saint Lawrence University, and an MA in International Studies from The University of Oregon. Her post-graduate training includes a year serving as Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar at Uganda's Makerere University, where she studied Human Rights. She was also tasked with traveling across East Africa to Rotary Clubs as a human rights activist. 

Katie is passionate about education as a means to breaking the cycle of poverty and looks forward to furthering the cause in her role at EFAC.  She welcomes the opportunity to connect with EFAC supporters and students. Please contact her at: kdonnelly@educationforallchildren.org.