Kenya Education Fund
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I coordinate the committee that reviews applications by students for scholarship awards. For the last several years, we've received approx 300 applications for fewer than half as many awards. The students complete some basic fill-in biographical information, send us their current grades and standardized test scores, and tell us more about themselves by answering 6 essay questions. These essays can be very moving. Students have written about: their families being killed in brutal tribal wars, being abandoned by their parents, being children of victims of HIV/AIDS. We've had children who were happy as nomadic Kenyans, tending their cattle, and children whose families had lost all their cattle to drought and were living off relief food. Reading these essays is a very moving experience and, although English is often their third language, some of them write beautifully. Girl's stories of running away from home to escape female genital mutilation (aka. circumsision) and early marriage to much older men are some of our most moving stories.
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
I've experienced the results of this organization in the letters that current high school students and graduates send to us. Our graduates can and do go on to universities, colleges, technical schools or can work right after school.
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
I would like to see us do a better job with PR and our website (and maybe social media, too) so we could better get our story to the public. I would also create a more structured follow up with our graduates so we could better tell their stories.
KEF focuses on providing high school education to kids across Kenya that can't pay the fees themselves. (High School education in Kenya is not free.)
Because girls are generally not given the priority of boys when it comes to education in Kenya, a large majority of the students that KEF supports are girls. This will go a long way to changing women's influence in Kenya in the future.
I am proud of the individual girls i support through KEF.
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
I have worked directly with the Executive Director and i've visited the students and schools in Kenya.
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
Grow the number of children it supports.
I am a relatively new donor to KEF, attracted to the organization because my donation - whatever the size - goes directly to a Kenyan child's education. The fact that such a small organization sponsors 500 children demonstrates its efficiency and focus. I'm proud to be a donor and look forward to increasing my donations in the future.
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
learning about the children who are benefiting from KEF's work.
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
increase its geographic reach.
I have pledged to support a young girl in Africa through 4 years of high school, and thus far have truly felt I have made a difference in someone's life. I like the idea of having a pesonal connection to that student rather than to some huge organization that I would donate to. By exchanging letters, I have gotten to know her and hear about her family and life. My experience with this organization has been so positive, and I know how hard the people in it work to make this happen. I am so happy that I became involved in this student (Alice's) education, and hopefully she will be able to continue with her education and make a difference in the lives of her family and village.
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
I receive wonderful letters from my student who is really working hard and taking advantage of the education she is being offered. I see the difference it has made in her life, and how she appreciates the chance she has been given. I think it's wonderful that this organization actually make a difference in a child's life.
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
I think it's doing just fine as it is. I think the people are very dedicated, hardworking and have wonderful spirit and energy.
My husband and I are sponsors of a young Kenyan girl and in our role as sponsor we pay for her high school education. We traveled to Africa 2 years ago and while we were there we had a chance to meet this lovely young lady. She was extremely appreciative and bright and informed us that this was her only chance to get an education in Africa. Her mother could not afford to send her to school. She writes us regularly and keeps us abreast of her progress. The Kenya Education Fund arrange for us to sponsor this girl and we feel that they have been an excellent support to all of us.
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
seeing the wonderful work that they do in Africa. I met some of the young ladies and was impressed with the opportunities that they were offered by the KEF.
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
like to be able to send money directly to the girl instead of just gifts.
My husband and I sponsor a Kenyan young woman through high school, by paying her tuition. We have been most impressed with the KEF. Through their efforts many youngsters have the opportunity to get a quality education that they would otherwise be denied. Our Kenyan "daughter" looks forward to continuing her education in college and to having a productive career that will allow her to change her life and help her family and community. She works very hard to keep up her grades and to make us and her family proud. She has a strong faith that helps her as she is seperated from her family for long periods, and also has to watch her familly deal with poverty, struggling even to keep food on the table.
The KEF has made our experience a very rewarding one. We write to Anne and also had the opportunity to meet her when we were in Nairobi. The director of the program went out of his way to bring Anne to our hotel in Nairobi so we could meet and spend some time together. It was so wonderful to meet her and see first hand what a lovely young woman we were helping to educate. I think for her the experience was overwhelming as she had never been to Nairobi, and certainly hadn't met foreigners. We had a chance to talk about her goals and both our families. Through our letters we continue the conversation. I am hoping that when my young granddaughters get a little older they will also write to Anne and come to understand a way of life so different from their own. We share photos of our families and of holidays. The KEF runs a program that is highly personal and I think highly effective.
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
meeting the student and by staying in touch with her through letters.
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
try to expand it to more students.
This is a very dedicated group of volunteers who are improving the lives of girls in Kenya by means of education.
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
N/a
More feedback...
How frequently have you been involved with the organization?
About every six months
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2009
Educating women in Kenya is vastly important to the continued success of this country. Educate a woman and you educate her children, her village, and her countrymen. It helps put an end to early marriage, FGM, and the advancement of AIDS in a society with enough other problems to be concerned about. This group is doing a fabulous job on all fronts working not just for the people of Kenya but WITH the people of Kenya.
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
In reading the letters written by young women who have been given the opportunity to achieve a high school education through their scholarship program. It raises their standing in society to be worthy individuals capable of many things.
More feedback...
How frequently have you been involved with the organization?
About every month
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2010
Working with Brad in his office on a day-to-day basis was really an eye-opener. Following the work of non-profits online or in the news, the individual personalities at play can sometimes get lost. But Brad's enthusiasm and devotion to education in Kenya is always there, and it is really wonderful to see him at work, talking to donors and preparing for KEF benefits. Taking part in KEF programs, you feel like you're doing more than just giving charity; you feel like you're part of something larger, something important, that is fundamentally impacting a child's life for the better.
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
...reading letters from children who have been sent to school. They are bright, heartwarming, funny, and so consciously grateful for something that we often take for granted.
More feedback...
How frequently have you been involved with the organization?
About every six months
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2010
Kenya Education Fund enabled me to pursue college education by paying my school fee to study community health & development at various levels.This has helped me have a base of a career that I want pursue by extending a hand and making a difference in someone's life especially the orphans and most vulnerable students in Kenya. It has been an eye opener to me and I highly appreciate the effort that K.E.F is putting to make us valuable individuals in our society. Thanks to the education they make available to us by paying our school fees. I am now an empowered woman and I feel respected. It has helped me out of the vicious cycle of poverty that had been surrounding me in my life before. I have got employment and I am capable of providing for my siblings the basic necessities that we could not get before.
Photos
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I've personally experienced the results of this organization in...
K.E.F has been paying my college fees since 2007. The education I am getting is empowering me as an individual and as a woman who can create a positive and developmental difference in her community.
Ways to make it better...
If I had to make changes to this organization, I would...
Tell the whole world of the positive impact that K.E.F has created in my life. I would stand out as a woman that through the sponsors goodwill, I have been able to get the best they want for all the children of Kenya.
More feedback...
What I've enjoyed the most about my experience with this nonprofit is...
The difference it has created in my life. I was a timid shy girl but through academic empowerment,my self esteem has improved, am very confident and outgoing. It has enabled me to relate with students from various parts of the country that are sponsored.
The kinds of staff and volunteers that I met were...
supportive, kind and generous. They are beyond what words can describe.
If this organization had 10 million bucks, it could...
Empower more children from poverty stricken backgrounds, orphans and the most vulnerable pursue their secondary and college education.
Ways to make it better...
So far, my experience with K.E.F is at its best.
In my opinion, the biggest challenges facing this organization are...
Few sponsors but an overwhelming number of students deserving sponsorship.
One thing I'd also say is that...
K.E.F is one of the most transparent and accountable organization I have ever come across.
How frequently have you been involved with the organization?
One time
When was your last experience with this nonprofit?
2010
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