Dear AIFEE Partners,
Greetings from the African International Foundation for Educational Excellence, (AIFEE). For close to two years now, AIFEE has been working diligently to improve educational standards in rural villages in Kenya. For many in rural Africa, education provides the only real escape from crippling poverty and the endless dependency on foreign aid. With your help, we have started to make lasting changes in the villages of Ngurumo, Kambi, Kimbo, Mwichuiri and Thirikwa and a growing number of schools in Central Province, Kenya.
AIFEE Newsletter, December 2019
Our Track Record
With your help, we have conducted multiple educational conferences and trained over 300 teachers. For the majority of these teachers, this was the first professional development opportunity they have had since college. The sessions have focused on educational leadership, instructional leadership, how to motivate students, engaging all students and creating an educationally powerful environment, among other topics. To show you how impactful and needed these seminars are, the Kenyan Ministry of Education has not only mandated all the teachers in the region to participate, but has sent its officials to each of the seminars and co-signed participation certificates with AIFEE! The cost for hosting a full day seminar is about $1500 with costs going to materials, equipment and food. Teachers provide their own transport and lodging. The conferences are scheduled for the first week in January (with travel starting the last week in December) and in June and generally run for two to three days. Please let us know if you would like to participate in a future educational conference and we can provide you with full details.
Another hallmark of our work has been the AIFEE Scholars program. AIFEE partners with parents to sponsor any student from our member school who meets the academic threshold of 350/500 points and is admitted to a reputable government secondary school. While we started with just three scholars in 2013, that number increased to ten with seven new scholars added in 2014. We anticipate that number to increase by at least ten more students this coming year. Students attend secondary school for four years after which they compete for spots in the local universities. AIFEE is looking for individuals, families or groups that can commit to sponsor one child for an entire academic year.
Since we started the programs, to Kenya we have refurbished multiple classrooms, built two brand new libraries, renovated and equipped three school/community libraries, started work on a school/community health clinic and provided hundreds of school supplies and learning materials. Groups of AIFEE volunteers have clothed school children with decent uniforms and fitted them with shoes. These volunteers have spent time in classrooms encouraging students, assisting teachers and grading home work. They have injected new life into these villages, where as we partner with the community, there is a new ray of hope in otherwise distressing conditions. If you or a friend are interested in participating in our annual volunteer trips to Kenya, please contact us for more details. The trips are scheduled for June/July and last about two weeks. You may also choose to donate towards equipping the libraries with books, school supplies or give a donation towards our building projects.
I hope you will find that our initiatives are powerful, relevant, transforming and sustainable. To cap it all, this year, AIFEE received a full designation as a 501 c 3 charitable organization, meaning that your donations are tax deductible.
My Appeal to you:
As a dear friend and partner, I invite you to consider how you might partner with us in this greatly rewarding work. You can request to participate in any of our upcoming travel programs to Kenya, or provide a financial gift to support any of these ongoing initiatives.
The cost for sponsoring one student is approximately $500 a year for school fees. Those who can give more may choose to partner with parents to meet the full cost that can be well over $700 a year for fees, uniforms and materials. I urge you to consider sponsoring at least one child or making a one time or regular donation to support our Scholars program.
Please visit us on our website at www.africaninternationalfoundation.org or like us on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/africaninternationalfoundation. Your donation is fully tax deductible and can be made through mail (P.O Box 3072, Carbondale, IL 62902) or online through our website. You can always reach us through email at Africaninternationalfoundation@gmail.com, or by phone at 563-580-4980. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Peter Gitau, PhD
President, African International Foundation for Educational Excellence (AIFEE)
The African International Foundation for Educational Excellence (AIFEE) is a Not for Profit organization committed to providing educational development in Africa.
The Foundation pursues its goals and objectives through need based interventions, community development through service learning and outreach, research and assessment, education and training, and strategic consultancy.
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