The Change-Makers: A Profile of Jason and Jenni Doherty

Jason and Jenni Doherty are the founders of Daraja Academy, and parents to 115 current students and many alumni. Jenni comes from a family of eight children and is the first woman in her family to go to university. Jason comes from a family of five, and his passion is education. They have one son named Thomas, who visited Daraja Academy for the first time this year.

Jenni loves reading novels while Jason loves painting and writing. They both like music. Jenni’s favorite food is rice, beans and greens while Jason likes chicken tikka masala.

Jason came up with the idea of starting a school. His parents supported his idea while Jenni’s parents at first thought it was crazy, but later accepted it and supported her. When they first came to Kenya they arrived in Nairobi. Specifically, they visited a slum called Kibera, and they talked to the people who live there.

A man from Tanzania helped them to find the name “Daraja” for their school, which means bridge in Swahili. They wanted to use education to create a bridge to success for girls in Kenya. They started the school in 2009 in Laikipia county in a place called Nanyuki. In order to start Daraja Academy, they had to sacrifice some of their relationships with friends and also did not spend much time with their families. While they were developing their plans, Jason’s father got sick with cancer and Jennie’s mother suffered from the same. In the end, both went into remission. These were just some of the obstacles they needed to overcome in order to continue their journey.

The challenge for Jason and Jenni now is raising money to support more girls. When fundraising, they talk about the Daraja girls and how much they need a chance.

“Be the change that you wish to see in the world” by Mahatma Gandhi is Jason’s favorite quote. Jenni’s favorite quote is “service is never convenient and when you are down and depressed, get out of yourself and serve.”

Jenni’s biggest piece of advice to people out there is not to give up. Jason’s message to girls in the world is that they just need to show up and be present. Both founders of Daraja take this advice themselves when they show up every day, always believing in the girls of Daraja and their ability to make their mark on the world.