Meet Nadia: Senior Manager - Philanthropy

Meet the team

I’m Nadia, Senior Manager - Philanthropy, here at School For Life, well ‘here’ is relative. School for Life has teams in Australia and Uganda - and now there's me, and I’m in the UK. 

I am British by birth, Australian by choice and after leaving England to go back-packing in 2007, I have just returned home. With somewhat more baggage than I left with. I am now married with two young children, 16 years of Australia under my belt and the prerequisite of all Northern Beaches expats: I am now a certified coffee snob! I work hard, play harder and am passionate about enabling change, seeing the good in the world and finding a way to make a difference. 

I have seen and admired the work of Annabelle Chauncy for a long time. As a fellow major gifts fundraiser our paths and our networks have crossed frequently over the years. I always found her energy to be infectious and her achievements, so much more than career aspirations. I introduced a friend to Annabelle suggesting they would make a great team - and within months of her starting at School for Life, her and Annabelle convinced me to do the same. 

I am tasked with identifying and establishing a network of high net worth School for Life supporters in the UK. We are looking to diversify our support as we expand our reach and impact in Africa. 

There is real joy in giving and I see my role as a facilitator of that joy to our supporters. I have a very donor centric approach to my work and although charities often focus on the beneficiary and the impact a gift has on their life - I never underestimate the impact a gift has on those doing the giving. It can be just as powerful and life defining for them. 

As my children enter the education system it is not lost on me how lucky we are. Sadly, we are not born equal. In fact, where we are born is the determining factor in our ability to fulfil our potential. My children have won the life-lottery of being born in a country and community of privilege and prospects that to so many is unimaginable. She has a right that is protected and maintained by her government and community, to education, to care and to safety. Her right to learn through play is entrenched in our advanced and exceptional education systems. Poverty is something she will likely never understand or experience beyond words or learning of someone else's world, which she can only imagine and wildly underestimate.

Children in Uganda, and many other parts of the world, do not have such privileges, opportunities or rights. We need to help extend the right to education for ALL children. Only through education can we realise the power and potential to overcome poverty, to change the lottery of life and to bring equity and opportunity to all children, wherever they may be born.

This is achievable. This isn't an insurmountable problem. We can break the cycle, change the inevitable. Like I said to Ava this morning, when she struggled with her stiff, new, school socks (why are they so much stiffer than normal socks?!). Just because something is hard, doesn't mean we don't try. We must try! And that is why I have joined School for Life Foundation

Working in philanthropy is the best of both worlds. I meet new and exciting people who have vast experiences, are keen to make a difference and leave a legacy beyond their own work. I also get to share in the joy and impact that these change-makers have on the lives of others. Watching the trajectory of a child/family/community change for the better is incredible and motivates me every day to get up and share the work of School for Life as far and wide as possible.  

Fun Facts

  • What are you currently reading? Such is life with little-ones, I mostly read to my children instead of for myself - currently enjoying reliving my childhood with the Peter Rabbit classics. My 5 year old also takes great joy in my efforts to read the Dr Seuss tongue twister books! Also, how good is Where’s Wally, a real bedtime favourite at the moment.

  • What's your favourite meal? My favourite meal is one cooked by someone else. With wine!

  • Where's the most interesting place you've ever been? Sri Lanka is probably the most interesting place I have been to date. We did the city, safari and beach - and I am desperate to go back and to the forests and mountains too. Such diversity, such beautiful people and incredible food. 

  • What would you say is your greatest achievement? My greatest achievement, beyond any doubt, are my children. Our journey to parenthood was not an easy or straightforward one, but thanks to the wonder of medical research, more loss, expense and heartbreak than I thought possible, we now have two beautiful, smart, sassy, bright and brilliant children (yes, I am probably a bit biassed!). Pretty proud of my marriage too - it’s been a journey to say the least!

  • What was your first job? My first job was working for a British band called Ocean Colour Scene. I was there during their hay-day, knocking Oasis off number one in the charts, and collaborating with Paul Weller. I toured with them, met some BIG names in the industry and saw the world through the fantastic lens of the British music scene in the late 90’s. It was epic!

  • I love to run and have run the New York, Paris and London marathons!

We need our School for Life family here in Australia, to help us connect with a wider audience. If you have personal and/or professional networks in the UK that may be interested in our work please reach out to Nadia at nadia@schoolforlife.org.au

Success Stories
Goretti

Sweet and shy Goretti lives with her aunt, uncle and cousins in a small house in the local village. When Goretti was younger, she moved in with her aunt and uncle because her parents could no longer look after her. She was one of our first students at Katuuso Primary, starting in 2011 when she was just 4 years old. Now, Goretti is in Senior One at Mbazzi High School, and is relishing the honour of being a high school student in her community - something that is taken for granted in Australia, but in Uganda, represents freedom and opportunity. Goretti also loves attending School for Life because she hopes to one day become a pilot in Uganda - a dream which she knows can only be reached with the help of a good education.

Violah

Violah has been at School for Life since since she was six years old. Sadly, Violah has experienced hardship no child should ever deal with. Her Dad passed away three years ago, leaving her Mum without the financial means to support her family - so she left Violah and her siblings with their elderly grandmother. Every day, Violah has to wake up at 5am to fetch water, cook meals and make sure that her younger sisters are properly looked after. Then she walks half an hour to get to school. Despite this adversity, Violah has flourished at school and has made many friends. She loves that School for Life is "helping me to build a future". After finishing school, Violah hopes to become a teacher to help other children.

Umar

Umar is one of our best performing students at Mbazzi Riverside High School - but life has not always been easy for Umar. His father abandoned the family in 2015, leaving his mother to struggle to support her five children on her own. School for Life has provided Umar with opportunities that may never else have eventuated for him. Umar begun his journey with School for Life at Katuuso Primary School, where his academic ability was quickly revealed. Now, he is a thriving member of our Senior 1 class and a formidable wing on the football team. With a love for mathematics, Umar is set on studying electronic engineering after finishing his senior studies - a goal which he is the first to admit is now within reach thanks to the skills and resources provided to him by School for Life.

Rose Nambooze

Rose is a 32‐year‐old single mother of one. She started working with SFL in 2013, after taking part in our tailoring training program. Prior to working with us, she was unemployed and living in her father's home helping to care for her father, who had cataracts, and his farm.
Thanks to her full time employment, Rose was able to save enough money to pay for an eye operation and restore her father's sight, allowing him to return to work as a mechanic. Now, Rose has moved into her own home and no longer relies on her father financially. 

Joseph

Joseph is one of our Special Needs teachers at Katuuso. After surviving a severe case of malaria at age four, he was left permanently deaf. He was raised by his single mother and attended a nursery school for the handicapped and later transferred to a school for the Deaf in Kampala. He eventually mastered sign language and pursued a university degree in education. Joseph decided to become a teacher so that he could give the gift of education to others who are hearing impaired.

Teddy Namatovu

Teddy is a participant in the Kumi Tailoring Program and four of her five children attend Katuuso Primary School. She and her husband farm two acres of land, which supplies fluctuating revenue. Participation in the Kumi Tailoring Project has secured income to reliably pay for school fees, nutritious meals and renovations to the family home. Teddy has gained a great deal of self-esteem from her ability to support her family and she takes pride in independently financing the education of all five children. Teddy has also been working on her numeracy and administration skills. She was appointed Treasurer of the tailoring group and will be responsible for keeping records of their savings.

Flaviah Nassaazi

Flaviah Nassaazi started working at Katuuso Primary and Vocational School in 2011. Prior to cooking at the school, she and her husband were subsistence farmers. They worked tirelessly for small yields and minimal income to support their family. Flaviah's cooking job not only enables her to pay school fees for her children, but she has also invested in a local barbershop business. She is now passing her cooking skills onto her eldest son Frank, who has also joined the school's cooking staff. Flaviah and her husband attend the adult literacy classes offered weekly at the school. Her English and reading have improved immensely, as well as her confidence.

Rachel

In 2010, Rachel began as a cleaner at Katuuso Primary and Vocational School. She was working to save money to study to be a teacher at University. Thanks to Barrie and Simone Goldsmith, her dream of studying came true and she is now fully qualified.