Just this past year, Daraja Academy’s campus was at capacity. The existing Daraja Academy staff, students, and partnership with Danish NGO MS ActionAid left little room for an additional group of students. The administration was unsure how to fit the upcoming freshman class onto campus. It was a nice problem to have as it symbolized the unbelievable growth that the school has experienced.
Thanks to a generous donor, however, the problem was solved: the academy was given the ability to build a new dorm. The administration team immediately hired a trusted local team of Kenyan contractors to complete the job. Within six months, a beautiful, welcoming new dorm was created. The construction team did an amazing job (Thanks George!)
You would think that this dorm would be exclusive to one class. But of course, that’s not the spirit of Daraja. Instead, the students are mixed up- regardless of grade, age, religion, tribe or hometown. With Daraja’s representing over 20 of Kenya’s 42 tribes, students of very different backgrounds are brought together as a means to encourage diversity and cultural awareness. Some of the students are rooming with peers that they would have normally barely interacted with. Although they come from different backgrounds, volunteer coordinator Andy Harley said it best: “You wouldn’t know it because they all treat each other like sisters.” Check out the photos below!
One of the brand new dorm rooms.
The front door of each dorm room has a poster done by the girls. In the picture above, students are creating posters for their front doors with their roommates.
Students Catherine and Alice N designed the poster above for their room.
