A beacon of hope since 2006
Daraja gives exceptional Kenyan girls from homes of need the education they deserve.
Our Story
Every girl has the right to an education to improve her life, family, and community.
Jenni and Jason Doherty founded Daraja around this core belief. When Jason and Jenni – educators from the San Francisco Bay Area – visited Kenya in 2006, they immediately noticed the degree to which gender determined educational opportunity.
The Need
And they saw that without a secondary education, Kenyan girls were at a disadvantage. Because girls lacked the opportunities that result from secondary education, they faced early marriage and pregnancies and were unlikely to attract the professional opportunities that engender economic self-sufficiency.
For Kenyan girls, secondary education is the fastest bridge out of poverty.
Our School
The Dohertys realized they could take action toward a solution by committing to establishing a school for exceptional girls who had no other means of continuing their education.
When they partnered with Victoria Gichuhi, a Kenyan educator who today serves as Daraja Girls School’s Head of School, the vision for the school became clear. Victoria’s leadership and experience in Kenya meant that the Dohertys had a partner who could brilliantly navigate local laws and policies. Together, they conceptualized a boarding school that addresses girls’ physical needs, provides a rigorous academic curriculum, and bolsters her as a woman and leader. They named the school Daraja, which means bridge, and sought to fill it with girls from all over Kenya whose potential would otherwise be lost.
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