In May, six Bridgewater College students spent two weeks volunteering at a girls’ boarding school in rural Kenya as part of a May Term travel course. Led by Dr. Tracy Hough, Assistant Professor of Education, the BC teacher education students joined 13 students from James Madison University at Nasaruni Academy, where they were partnered with local teachers and assisted in teaching K-12 students in reading, writing and other subjects.
Nasaruni Academy is an English-language private school in southwestern Kenya that serves girls from the Maasai community, a semi-nomadic group indigenous to southern Kenya and northern Tanzania. The school was founded to provide an education to girls who would not otherwise receive formal education due to economic hardship and cultural traditions that encourage early marriage.
Lizzie Mumbert ’24 was one of the participants in the May Term trip. While in Kenya, she student-taught in a classroom without electricity, comprised of students in first through third grades who had to share textbooks and other resources. Mumbert said that the experience helped her appreciate the education and resources that are available in the U.S. Despite the limited resources, Mumbert was struck by how eager the Maasai students were to learn.
“We often take education for granted in the States,” Mumbert said. “Seeing how much the girls love school and learning was really rewarding because that’s my hope as a teacher, to help students find a love for learning.”
While in Kenya, students lived in safari camp tents and took their meals with the teachers and students at the school. They also had the opportunity to visit a Maasai village, visit a wildlife sanctuary and take a safari during their time in Kenya.
Hough said that she hopes that the BC students come away from the experience feeling like they can make a difference in the lives of their students wherever they teach.
“The experience really touched the students,” Hough said. “They suddenly realized that there is so much more to teaching and that they can really connect and make a difference. I hope they will go forth and see opportunities to be champions for the children in their future classrooms.”
Emily Poole ’25 also traveled to Kenya with the group. Upon her return, she spoke about navigating the cultural differences and said that the experience gave her a broader worldview, one she hoped to share with her future students. She was also touched by the students’ and teachers’ focus on community.
“The people in Kenya live in community and practice Ubuntu, which is an outlook on life where they believe in helping others and no one is left behind. It is a beautiful thing to witness. Everyone is so friendly and they know no strangers,” Poole said.
Nasaruni Academy was founded 10 years ago by a Maasai educator and currently serves about 268 girls. The students pay what they can afford, which is usually not much, and the remainder of the expenses are covered through grants and donors in the U.S. Classes are taught in English, although students also speak Kiswahili and Kimaa, their native language. The first group of seniors will graduate from the Academy in December.
Hough has sat on the board of directors for Nasaruni Academy for six years and plans to return there in the spring for her pre-tenure sabbatical. According to Hough, the Kenyan government has recently rolled out new requirements that teachers implement more American-style competency-based curriculum. As part of her sabbatical, Hough will research how to implement such curriculum in under-resourced schools. Hough said that she would love to expand BC’s relationship with Nasaruni Academy to involve more international education trips and support.
For Mumbert, her experience in Kenya was just the beginning of her life abroad. After completing the May Term, Mumbert went directly from Kenya to her first post-college job: teaching at an international school in Thailand.
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– Heather S. Cole
