What makes Christmas special in Uganda

What makes Christmas special in Uganda

Christmas is a joyful time of year for communities across the world and it’s no different in rural Uganda. Over 80% of the population is Christian, so Christmas - Sekukkulu in Uganda - is special for many families. The students at School for Life have started their Christmas break and are eagerly counting down to Christmas Day. And just like in Australia, it will be filled with family, food and fun. But there are, of course, cultural differences. So, what does Christmas look like in Uganda?

Recovering from two years of lost learning

Recovering from two years of lost learning

With the education gap in Uganda now wider than ever, we take a look at the impact of lost learning in the communities we support and the vital efforts needed to help them recover. Secondary school student, Regina, shares about her life before and during school closures, and why she is happy to be back at school.

Seisma pledge 1% to help break the cycle of poverty

Seisma pledge 1% to help break the cycle of poverty

With a strong alignment of values and a focus on the empowerment of women and girls in the IT space, so began our partnership with Seisma in 2020.

Seisma currently sponsor 85 of our secondary school girls as well as our IT Teacher, Jerome, and recently contributed to our Giving Day as matched funding partners.

Read on to find our more about our major corporate partner, Seisma.

Introducing Helen: Acting CEO

Introducing Helen: Acting CEO

We are excited to announce the appointment of Helen Caldwell as Acting CEO of School for Life while our CEO and Founding Director, Annabelle Chauncy, enjoys six months of parental leave to adjust to life as a new mother.

Helen joins us after nine and a half years at AIME (previously Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience) most notably as their Partnerships Director and close support to AIME’s CEO and Founder. Click through to meet Helen!

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Trip to Uganda inspires HSC Major Artwork

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Trip to Uganda inspires HSC Major Artwork

After joining our Travel4Good Parent and Child trip back in September 2019, Jess was so inspired that two years later, her HSC Major Artwork portrays her experience on that trip to our schools in rural Uganda.

As students all across NSW are sitting their HSC exams, we had a quick chat with Jess about her HSC artwork, what education means to her and where to after the HSC.

How Jezzie's Starlight Wish is helping other children’s wishes come true

How Jezzie's Starlight Wish is helping other children’s wishes come true

At the age of 8, Jezzie was offered the chance to have a wish granted by the Starlight Children’s Foundation after long-suffering the autoimmune disease Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (ADEM) since she was only 18 months old.

In August 2020 her wish - for children overseas to go to school, get an education and have a chance at life - was granted through connecting her with us here at School for Life.

Read on to find out more about our inspiring mini hero and Supporter in the Spotlight for this month.

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School for Life opens a Girls' Boarding House!

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School for Life opens a Girls' Boarding House!

School for Life celebrated a massive milestone on February 28, 2021. On this day we opened our first boarding facility and welcomed the first group of Senior girls to their new home. Here we share the story of the opening as well as introduce you to some of the wonderful students who started their boarding school journey with us.

Google Classroom - Closing the digital divide in rural Uganda

Google Classroom - Closing the digital divide in rural Uganda

Around one third of the world’s children do not have access to remote learning. So when COVID-19 hit and schools were forced to close around the globe, 463 million children - most of whom are from rural communities - fell into the chasm of the digital divide. The pandemic shed a brutal spotlight on the digital inequalities children face and the impact this has on accessing a quality education. At School for Life, we are hoping to bridge that gap by implementing Google Classroom while schools remain shut across Uganda.

Keeping our communities safe - COVID-19 Awareness Drive

Keeping our communities safe - COVID-19 Awareness Drive

After all schools across Uganda were mandated to shut down to prevent the escalating second wave of COVID-19 in early June, forcing our students to stay at home and keep within their villages, our Community & Welfare team quickly moved into action to ensure the wider population were educated on preventative measures to keep healthy and safe. In doing so, our team reached and educated a wider audience, helping to reduce the likelihood of our students contracting the virus whilst in contact with their local community members.

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.