Elimisha Kakuma: Fundraising for our third cohort

Elimisha Kakuma, a registered 501c(3) organization, works with students in Kakuma Refugee Camp to prepare for and access tertiary education. The idea to start this program sprung from three college students who are former refugees from Kakuma and understood the importance of an education for refugee students; along with their former teacher, they formed Elimisha Kakuma. With the passion to provide an opportunity to many other refugee youths in the camp, they came together from their respective college dorms and formed the program over zoom in 2021.

The program has successfully taken through two of its cohorts with students earning scholarships in the US, Canada, Europe, and Kenya. Some of the universities our students are currently attending are such as Dartmouth College, University of Tulsa, Trinity College, Elmhurst University, Western University, Simon Fraser University, and University of Calgary, and our current class has begun receiving their admissions and funding from schools including Macalester College, Calvin University, Czech University of Life Sciences, among others. We are currently recruiting our third cohort of ten students.

With such tremendous success, we want to continue supporting more refugee students to access higher education and increase the current statistic that fewer than 1% of refugee students in East Africa make it to universities, as per the 2017 United Nations Report, to at least 5% attending colleges. To do so, we have to successfully prepare our students to be both prepared for college applications and to succeed in college.

To achieve that goal, we are raising at least $10,000 to buy new computers, provide stipends, lunch/Breakfast for our third cohort of 10 students, and one laptop for our facilitator on the ground that helps us run the program on the ground, Kakuma Refugee Camp. Our programs are mostly virtual, with students doing coursework on canvas and meeting with teachers and tutors via zoom. Having powerful laptops is vital for our students as they connect with our facilitators and become familiar with the many online resources that will help them in the preparation program before attending university. Providing lunches for our students will enable them to concentrate on the program and allow them to be well prepared for their college applications as well as other college level courses.

As one of our co-founders Mary Maker said in her TED Talk that was viewed over a million times, “for the child of war, an education can turn their tears of loss into a passion for peace.” Education creates peace. Help us further this passion for peace by supporting this community of young people who simply need an opportunity to access higher education. They are the key to strengthening their communities, rebuilding their countries, and improving this world.

Background/ Summary: Elimisha Kakuma is a university-access program that supports high school graduates in Kakuma Refugee Camp in attaining higher education. Students receive intensive academic instruction and TOEFL preparation, mentorship with current college students, and guidance through the college application process. As more refugees gain access to higher education, their long-term life outcomes will be improved, and their communities will be strengthened.

Elimisha Kakuma was also recently recognized in Duolingo English Test's We Rise Together awardees for 2022 and received their Award for Social Advocacy.

Co-founders:

Mary Maker: Mary is in her last semester at St Olaf College, majoring in Theater. Before she delivered her popular TED Talk, Mary studied and taught primary school in Kakuma. She now works with the UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, to build and run educational programs for young women in the camp.

Diing Manyang: Diing graduated with a degree in Systems Engineering and a minor in Economics from The George Washington University. She’s currently working as a Technology Analyst at Morgan Stanley. Diing studied and taught primary and secondary school in Kakuma.

Joseph Dudi Miabok: Dudi is in his last semester at Harvard University, majoring in History and Science. He grew up in Kakuma where he studied and taught in primary and secondary school. The summer of 2020, he helped with the construction of Elimisha Kakuma’s on-site center in Kakuma and equipped it with necessary equipment to facilitate learning.

Deirdre Hand: Deirdre is an educator with a Master's in Education, Curriculum, and Instruction, with a concentration in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages). Deirdre has more than 14 years of experience teaching English across five continents, notably in Kakuma, Rwanda, Guatemala, Indonesia, the Czech Republic, and the United States.