Friends of Ngong Road

We empower Nairobi children living in poverty to transform their lives through education and support, leading to employment.

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Elimu Hub

Elimu Hub Designed with the Present and Future In Mind

Student- and Alumni-Centered
The design of Elimu Hub followed architecture’s golden rule: Form follows function. First and foremost, this was to be a student- and alumni-centered place. 

There are many reasons students come to the NRCF offices. They gather en masse to help carry supplies across Ngong Road for the Saturday Program. They sometimes visit with their case manager. A library was established early on because there was little alternative available. Students realized their friends were there so they’d gather around the offices. And then the Computer Lab was established, and students started taking regular classes on site. Over time, a melding of students and staff interchangeably occupied NRCF offices. 

The priority for a new location was near the slum where our students live but large enough to accommodate the increasing number of children served. The location selected had a large yard which allowed space to construct a separate building, apart from the administrative offices, for student use. 

A space dedicated for student use sends a message to the students that they matter. It is a place where they are provided with educational and technical resources that offers them a chance to learn and grow. It is a place where they are welcomed and can be with their fellow students.

Technology-Forward
Post-secondary education and the well paying jobs that follow will go to high school  graduates who are the most technology prepared and educated. All NRCF students are computer trained and certified in Microsoft Office skills. NRCF continues to expose students to technology with its Computer Lab, STEM Club, and laptop loaner program. 

Elimu Hub is designed to be technology forward. It includes solar power to help offer a more reliable power source, addressing constant interruptions from rolling brownouts and blackouts. The wi-fi will be faster, improving faster processing and connectivity. 

The laptop computer loaner system will become more systemized and efficient, providing greater access to more laptops for more students to use each day. A space for their use is built into the plans. 

Beyond today’s functionality, Elimu Hub will be operated by a NRCF team who welcome changing and emerging technologies. Those team members were instrumental in the design process and will continue to ensure that the resources and technical education being delivered to students will best prepare them for post-secondary education and the jobs that follow. 

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Changes to sponsorship support

Sponsorships are a key component of what makes Friends of Ngong Road unique. Sponsors have a very personal 1:1 relationship with their students and see the impact of their investment in changing a child’s life.

Sponsorship fees cover the cost of school fees, books, uniforms, meals, and school housing (if needed). Additional funds are raised to support student training and support costs. The cost of sponsorship has not changed in 15 years and was initially developed based on three tiers:  $750/year ($62.50/month) for primary school, $1250 ($104.17/month) for secondary school, and $1,000 ($83.33/month) for post-secondary school.

NRCF primary students

Over the years a few things have impacted the program:

  • School fees have increased significantly
  • The cost difference between grade levels has become negligible 
  • Currently, the full cost of a student in our program is:
    • $2402/year for primary
    • $2415/year for secondary
    • $2210/year for post-secondary
  • The management of differing sponsorship fee levels adds time and cost

In 2021 we decided to rationalize sponsorship fees to one level for the entire length of a student’s school career. We will now be asking sponsors to support students at $100/month ($1200/year). You will be notified on your sponsorship anniversary. There will continue to be the need to raise money for additional support for students such as our Life Skills Program, Saturday Program, medical assistance, case managers, etc.

If you are a sponsor, we hope you will consider paying at the new level and making your payments automatic on a monthly or annual basis. This helps keep our administrative costs low.

In addition, if you wish to contribute towards the additional program costs, consider a monthly donation or one-time gift by clicking here.

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Don’t forget to contribute to our Annual Appeal!

Donate

Thank you to the many friends who have already donated to our annual appeal! We are making great progress but still need additional supporters to achieve our goal of raising $150,000 by year-end. 

These funds are critical in supporting costs not covered by student sponsorship, including areas critical to education and development such as the safety and well-being programs, the computer lab, the library, and the Saturday programs.

Your support will be DOUBLED thanks to the $75,000 matching gift from the Ted and Kathy Truscott Family Foundation. You can also consider a gift of stock to fit in with your year-end tax planning.  

It’s not too late! Help us transform lives.

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The Impact of COVID-19

We are all feeling a bit overwhelmed by developments in the world over the past two weeks including the spread of COVID-19.  This is a brief update on what is happening to our program in Kenya and also to our team in the U.S.
Our objectives are:

  • to keep our staff in both Kenya and the U.S. safe and healthy;
  • to comply with public health recommendations and mandates in both countries; and
  • to make decisions that enhance the likelihood the organizations will successfully weather this storm so we can continue to focus on our mission of educating students and transforming lives post-crisis.

It is important to note that the community we work with in Kenya is extremely vulnerable to the harm this situation will inflict on people. Most of the student’s parents and guardians have pre-existing health conditions; they all have limited income, usually earned by performing casual labor that has already evaporated; and in the slums, there is no such thing as “social distance”. You will note in our summary of the situation in Kenya that we have increased our budget for emergency food aid and believe it will be sorely needed in the coming weeks. If you would like to make a donation to support providing basic food packets to our families in Kenya, please click on the button below. A $40 gift can provide food packets that feed a family for a month.

Donate now to provide food support for families who are impacted.

In Kenya:

  • Several cases of COVID-19 have appeared in Kenya.  The government of Kenya has taken aggressive action to prevent the virus from spreading in the country.
  • Kenyan public health officials have mandated no gatherings of large numbers of people, they have closed all schools effective this week and require that employees work from home.
  • We have formed a Crisis Management team for both Ngong Road Children’s Foundation and Karibu Loo Limited.  The teams in Kenya meet daily and provide written updates to the U.S. Crisis Management Team, along with a global weekly touch-base meeting.
  • Ngong Road Children’s Foundation will operate with a skeleton staff and will communicate with students and families through text messages, updates to our website, and printed flyers. This is in regards to the measures in place to deal with COVID-19.
  • Caseworkers are available to students and families by telephone or by appointment in the office in case of emergencies.
  • Saturday Program, home visits, and school visits are suspended during this crisis.
  • We have cut staff hours, salaries, and other expenses in an effort to preserve options as the crisis unfolds while also ensuring our staff has enough income to cover their essential needs.
  • Karibu Loo business will also be curtailed as long as there are prohibitions on gatherings and social events as a move to curb COVID-19 spread.  As with Ngong Road Children’s Foundation, we have reduced expenses to a minimum.
  • We have significantly increased our budget for food aid for families, as we expect this crisis to result in significant food insecurity for our population.

In the United States:

  • We have formed a Crisis Management Team consisting of Paula Meyer, Amy Johnson, and Keith Kale; we meet daily.
  • Our associates in the U.S. operate on a remote basis and will continue that practice. We have made no changes to staff compensation or hours, though changes made by daycare providers are affecting several of our team members.
  • Paula Meyer and other board members have increased the amount of time working on Friends of Ngong Road matters and we expect that to continue in the coming months as we work to navigate these unprecedented times.  Our board of directors will meet this week and again in April to deliberate issues facing the organization.
We remain committed to our mission and will work to successfully navigate these challenging times.  If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to paula@ngongroad.org.Thank you, and stay healthy!

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Letter from Nairobi

Currently, all primary and secondary (Form One to Form Three) students in Nairobi are on a long holiday that will end when schools resume on 6th January 2020. Grade (class) 8 students took the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) exams on 31st October 2019 while the final high school examination (Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education, or KCSE) for Form 4 (seniors) began on 4th November 2019 and will end towards the end of November. Their respective schools had prepared the students to tackle both key exams confidently.

During the long holiday, the students who are not sitting for exams will be taking part in various activities ranging from life skills sessions, career guidance and counseling, sexual/reproductive health training, menstrual hygiene education, drug use, and abuse sensitization sessions, group discussions, library sessions, and computer studies. The activities will take place concurrently with each class tackling a different area. High school students will learn life skills, group discussions, sexual/reproductive health, computer studies, and career counseling and mentorship. Primary school children will enjoy the library and computer studies.

We conduct drug use and abuse sensitization sessions for the upper classes (Grades 6 to 8). Girls in the upper classes receive menstrual hygiene education. During this time, the children are happily receiving breakfast and lunch which couldn’t have been available were it not for your generosity towards NRCF. Due to extended holiday periods, we have expanded the Saturday Program to provide children with activities that enhance their talents.

We divide sessions into four broad categories that aim to foster the holistic development of children. This involves psychosocial health (yoga, cheering, singing, fun activities, brain games, talent shows, and team building). Other areas are cognitive development (arts and crafts, book reading, debates and presentations, crosswords and puzzles), and social development (clubs and societies, e.g. drama, music, scouts, dance club, journalism, and St. John ambulance). Finally, physical development (soccer, Katie, taekwondo, soccer, rugby, volleyball, handball, and athletics). On Saturdays, children also enjoy a well-balanced lunch that is part of the nutrition program.

The highlight of the holiday season is the Annual General Meeting (AGM) for all NRCF stakeholders (children, parents/guardians, local community, NRCF staff, volunteers, and board members). During this meeting, we share our achievements, successes, challenges, lessons learned, and plans for the coming year. We normally share Christmas lunch as a family on this occasion. Families get Christmas packs with chicken, maize & wheat flour, cooking oil, rice, sugar, beans, veggies, and fruit.

We have scheduled the event for December 7th, 2019, in Nairobi. This year’s AGM is special since we will be launching our new entity – Ngong Road Children’s Foundation (NRCF). We will be transitioning from an “Association” to a “Non-Governmental Organization (NGO)”. The children are excited as they look forward to the event since it will be joined by the founder and President of Friends of Ngong Road, Paula Meyer. After the celebration children normally break for the Christmas holidays. Some travel to their rural areas to celebrate with their extended families. Others remain behind to continue benefiting from what the program offers normally such as library and computer lab access.

Thank you all for creating a big impact in the lives of these once desperate and hopeless children in Nairobi who have been given an opportunity to transform their lives.

Sincerely,


Maureen Mulievi
Programme Director
Ngong Road Children’s Foundation