Accessible Education

In primary school, Hudson and Matilda would return home after school to TEC, a coffee plantation settlement near the Rift Valley Children’s Village, eager to start their homework. “I like to study because I need to achieve my goals,” Hudson explained, his eyes lighting up. But instead of studying, they had to spend their after-school hours helping with daily household chores, like collecting firewood, soaking beans, and cutting the grass. There was no time for homework, no quiet place to study, and often no electricity to support their at-home learning.

Through their strong primary school performance, Hudson and Matilda earned spots in the Tanzanian Children’s Fund Oldeani Scholarship Hostel initiative. The initiative pays for participants’ secondary school fees and also provides a stable, secure group home that is only a fifteen minute walk from Oldeani Secondary School (OSS) campus. The Oldeani Scholarship Hostel, which is currently home to 17 scholars, provides the safe, focused and supported environment these students crave. It also removes the many barriers, such as financial constraints and two-hour-long walks to school, that too often prevent students from continuing their education. 

Now, without the demands of their homelife or financial burdens to worry about, Hudson and Matilda can spend all the time they need studying to achieve their goals. Matilda, a Form 4 student, wants to become a nurse. Hudson, who is in Form 2, hopes to become a pilot one day. “At home it was hard to study,” says Matilda, adding that “the hostel environment is good because it supports us to study hard.” Hudson agrees, saying, “I get all the basic needs to study: books, pens, a table, and it’s quiet.” 

Currently, TCF’s hostel students are among the highest academic performers at OSS, with most of them within the top 30 students in their class! We can’t wait to see what Matilda, Hudson, and all of our other Hostel students will achieve in the years to come.