VISION: TO EDUCATE POVERTY OUT OF EXISTENCE.

School for Life has been built on the joint principles of capacity development and community empowerment. This means we provide a hand-up not a hand-out.

We believe in the transformative impact of education and we aim to provide a high-quality education to those who need it most, so they can develop themselves and change the communities where they live.

MISSION: Empowering developing communities to become sustainable through quality education and related community activities. Children are at the heart of everything we do.

Holistic approach to education: We don't just build schools; we create comprehensive educational environments. This includes providing food, clothing, shelter, and school supplies to ensure that children have their basic needs met to focus on learning. Our programs are designed to support not just academic learning but also life skills and emotional well-being, preparing children for a successful future. 

Sustainable community development: Our projects are deeply integrated into the communities we serve. We work with local leaders and families to ensure our schools are culturally relevant and supported by the community. By empowering communities through education, we foster local ownership and sustainability, ensuring that the benefits of our work continue long after our initial involvement. 


Innovative solutions in challenging environments: We take on the challenge of building quality schools in areas where others can't. This often involves innovative solutions to logistical, environmental, and social challenges. Our willingness to operate in the most challenging environments demonstrates our commitment to addressing the root causes of educational inequality and poverty.

our goal is to educate 10,000 prosperity makers across east africa by 2029.

Strategic pillars for 2024 – 2029:

Over the next five years, our goal is to graduate 10,000 “Prosperity Makers” across East Africa - young women and men who will bring hope, opportunity, and prosperity home to their families and communities.

We’re taking our proven education model to new communities, working shoulder to shoulder with local leaders in some of the hardest-to-reach places. 

Together, we’re building a future where quality education empowers children to break the cycle of poverty and create lasting prosperity. 

USE OUR SCHOOLS AS AN EXCELLENCE HUB TO REACH MORE CHILDREN

Our three schools operate as a hub for the local communities we serve, providing quality education to 1900 prosperity makers. We will use our infrastructure and resources to support more children through partnerships with local Government schools, providing infrastructure (classrooms, kitchens, clean water sources and latrines), strengthening the capacity of teachers and leaders, providing nutritious meals, scholastics and skilling programs.

INVEST IN STUDENT post school PATHWAYS

With our first graduates completing High School in 2024, we will be piloting a pathways program to provide career guidance and post school transition support, along with scholarships into University and vocational training institutes.

CREATE A GLOBAL EDUCATION NETWORK

Leveraging our learnings from the past 15 years, we will apply our model to more locally led organisations across East Africa with funding and bespoke capacity development, so we can reach more students in last mile communities with quality education, faster.

ENSURE ORGANISATIONAL FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY

We will create a $10M endowment fund called The Prosperity Fund to build a lasting foundation to ensure we are around forever.

Read more about what keeps us focused. Click here to view and download a copy of our Annual Report.

DOWNLOAD OUR ANNUAL REPORT

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.