At 3 years old, Marietha Simon is bright, curious, charismatic, and always eager to tell you about her latest adventure. Before the expansion of our Education Program, Marietha’s educational future would have lacked critical resources, classrooms, teachers, and books.

TCF launched our Special Education Program at Gyetighi Primary School (GPS) to accommodate diverse learners and create a more equitable level of education for students. Teacher Susan Ngowi has been passionately leading a classroom of nine students of varying ages and disabilities.

As we approach our 20th year of operations, we have thought critically about the impact we have made and the needs that remain present in our community. We are celebrating this anniversary by growing our Rift Valley Children’s Village family, treating a record number of patients, and by DOUBLING the number of students we serve.

The goal for all of our partner schools is to create student-centered, high-performing academic institutions. In order to give every student the best chance of success, we are dedicated to catering to all learning styles and providing students with the individualized attention they deserve.

Since the start of our partnership, students and staff at Gyetighi Primary School (GPS) have worked hard to achieve academic success. Dedicated to providing students with a holistic education, TCF introduced Art, Dance, and Music classes to inspire and motivate students at Gyetighi Primary School. 

We are now 6-months into our partnership with Oldeani Primary School (OPS)! When we began co-managing OPS, there were only 6 teachers for 700 students, limited school supplies and learning materials, crumbling infrastructure, and little student support. 

The Student Teacher Program is aimed at tackling two major problems that face our community: dedicated, smart young adults unable to continue their education due to financial constraints and a limited number of teachers available to give primary school students the individual attention they need.

In 2022 we are taking huge strides in deepening our impact in education to better serve more students in our community. In addition to expanding our school partnerships, we have kicked off our Teacher Training Program.

We have big news! Starting in January 2022, we are entering our third public-private partnership with the government to run Oldeani Primary School. As a school with over 700 students and only 6 teachers, the need for resources and leadership is significant.

Multiple teacher trainings have taken place at OSS and GPS over the last few months, with the plan to continue these sessions bi-monthly throughout the rest of the year. Trainings have been aimed at helping teachers incorporate new techniques to best reach a variety of learners.

Many families in our corner of Tanzania face significant financial barriers that prevent them from sending their children on to secondary school. The Akiba Program aims to bridge that financial gap that exists for these families.

Just about a year ago, we made the difficult decision to go into lockdown in order to ensure the safety of our community. During that time, our college kids came home and our senior staff remained at RVCV as we went into quarantine. As we reflect on those days spent together, we feel grateful for the unintended positives that resulted.

On October 7th, Standard 7 students across Tanzania will sit for the Primary School Leaving Examination, a culminating, two day exam that tests students on everything they have learned over the past eight years of primary school.

Updates from Gyetighi Primary School & Oldeani Secondary School

As part of our partnership with Gyetighi Primary School, we aim to equip teachers with the best available knowledge and resources to ensure that the 465 students that attend Gyetighi are receiving the education they deserve.