A letter from the founder...

The summer of my junior year in high school, my appreciation for education deepened and my view of the world changed when I traveled to Naro Moru, Kenya on a volunteer trip to teach primary school students English, science, and creative arts.  I was astounded at the enthusiasm the Kenyan children had for learning and for school. Bent over their newspaper-shod notepads, carefully penning down the material written on the uneven, concrete blackboard, my students' daily discipline and determination to absorb as many facts as possible revealed their commitment to learning. 

One afternoon I mentioned to my mentor teacher, Rose Kabui, my admiration for the children’s drive to learn.  Her response was that most families don’t value education and instead focus on earning enough money to survive.  In order to avoid leading the same laborious lives as their parents, she said, students must pursue a higher education to advance and escape the static, impoverished lifestyle that characterizes most generations of their families.  However, the educational system in Kenya is rigorous. Students’ performance on a series of standardized tests determines whether they will advance to secondary school. At the end of 8th grade, students take the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education Exam (KCPE), and only a select number of high scorers advance with government funding. Most students’ education will end after 8th grade due to the lack of family funds needed for secondary school fees.

I was disheartened to learn that, despite their diligence and commitment to do well on these tests and improve their lives, students are still unable to advance without adequate funding.

In my senior year of high school, I started a scholarship initiative to address this issue and raise money for eighth graders from Irigithathi Primary School to matriculate to Irigithathi Secondary School, all expenses paid.  Thanks to the generous support of my family and friends, we were able to raise the needed funds to support six students. With additional funds from the St. Gregory 12 Hour Fundraising Run, we were able to fund another two scholars in 2014. 

In 2013, I established the Hansen Foundation for Education to continue supporting and funding the education of underserved students.  Through the Foundation’s first project, the Kenya Scholarship Project, we will continue raising money to sponsor eighth grade students in Naro Moru public schools through four years of secondary school.  In 2015, we added a Boarding School program that sends top achieving students from the Naro Moru area to national boarding schools in Kenya. In 2018, we sponsored our first college-bound scholar and now have 3 students in Kenyan universities, colleges, and vocational schools.

So far, we have raised funds to support 35 scholars for the 2019 school year and strive to do even more. 

Your financial gift to help these deserving children continue their education and have a future with choices would be so greatly appreciated.  Thank you for your consideration and interest in the Hansen Foundation for Education. 

Sincerely,

Emily Q. Hansen 

President and Founder, Hansen Foundation for Education