Partnership with the Kakenya Center for Excellence

Kakenya’s Story

The founder of KCE, Dr. Kakenya Ntaiya, built upon her own life experiences to create lasting change in her Maasai community in rural Kenya. Most Maasai girls are forced to undergo female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriage, effectively ending their education and dreams for the future. After surviving FGM, Kakenya fought to stay in school and became the first woman from her village to attend university. After earning her PhD in education in the United States, she returned home, determined to provide a pathway to education for every girl in her community and beyond.

The School

Kakenya established KCE in 2009 in her home village of Enoosaen, almost 250 miles west of Nairobi. A boarding school for girls, KCE provides a holistic education encompassing not only academics, but also leadership training, legal rights workshops, extracurricular activities, field trips, health care, mentoring, and counseling. Because of tremendous demand, Kakenya established a second campus to accommodate more students. Each campus serves approximately 200 students with grades 4-9 at KCE I and grades 7-12 at KCE II. Students from both campuses excel academically, earning top honors on national exams.

Outcomes

100% of KCE students avoid FGM and child marriage and go on to high school. 84% of KCE graduates pursue higher education. 100% of alumnae serve as mentors to current students, supporting and nurturing the next generation of Kenyan girls from their community.