I heard a quote while raising awareness for Daraja Academy last September that has stuck with me. Ted Church, a Daraja supporter from Boulder, Colorado remarked in an off hand way that, “all roads lead to Daraja.” The people that are caught by the inertia of this small girls school in central Kenya are nothing short of remarkable. Often they hear about the girls and ultimately end up joining our movement in very unexpected ways.

The following piece was written by Colin Grisel, who’s road luckily lead to Daraja. He has been working tirelessly to forward the Daraja Academy cause since his arrival in November. Originally from Switzerland, he has lived in Egypt and Nepal, utilizing the skills he learned while earning his master’s degree in Development. Colin has started a monthly Daraja newsletter while also making in-roads to Kenyan and international organizations. I really feel that he explains the tug-o-war that occurs inside of all of us, during this difficult selection process.

Jason Doherty

A Tough Selection

Daraja Academy is currently doing what I believe to be the toughest part of its work: selecting for the year to come, among a high pile of excellent but heartbreaking applications, 25 students. The school will have to turn down a number of brilliant girls in need of support: it is simply impossible to give a chance to all of them.

I hope this sounds tough on paper because I can confirm that it is also tough, in the field. Jenni and Jason Doherty, with the good advice of their outstanding Kenyan staff, must distribute the “yes’s” and the “no’s”. Because of your support, they are able to offer four-year scholarships, but this does come at the price of refusing help to others.

Today, Friday 29th, we met eleven amazing girls, knowing that there would be only one or two seats available in the Daraja Academy classrooms for students coming from this specific part of Kenya. Nine “no’s” to distribute, for two “yes’s”.

They all exposed us good reasons why Daraja Academy should accept them. Great marks at school, despite pasts full of stories about poverty, death, sicknesses, unemployment, prostitution, riots, refugee camps… always with voices full of hope and determination. Answering our questions with strength and courage, some girls, at times, burst into tears. This is a scene that I didn’t want to exist, but it is a reality that I needed to face.

Small girls, who looked fragile, proved to be so strong, so big, proved to know a lot more about the meaning of life than I do. Between other things, what these young women taught me today is exactly what I recently read in a Persian poem: “you have two ears and only one mouth, so listen twice as often as you speak.” They gave me a great lesson in humility that I wish to never forget.

I look forward to meeting some of these girls on campus come March! And I wish the best of luck, with all my broken heart, to the ones that I might not see again…