Turkana High School

Term 2, 2021

Receive greetings in the blessed name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We thank God for your support and partnership that has enabled us to successfully go through the third term and we are now looking forward to the next academic year. 

Blessings,
Francis Muthee
Principal, Turkana High School

Total Enrolled: 151 students
Total Unsponsored: 44 students

Anna* recently completed grade ten at the Turkana High School. She comes from a dysfunctional home where her parents deserted her and her three siblings, leaving them under the care of their grandmother who brews alcohol for a living.

After spending six years at a local school, Anna’s grandmother brought her for enrollment at MOHI’s nearby Napuu center and she joined the school in 2016 as a grade six student. Later, in 2018 she took her grade eight national exit exam and joined our school as a grade nine student in January of 2019. When schools closed for the April break, Anna conceived and she came back to school pregnant. She continued with her studies until she gave birth in January 2020. She ended up staying home until schools reopened, after the COVID-19 closure, in January 2021.

During the entire process of her pregnancy, the time she spent at home, and even when she came back to school, we walked closely with Anna. Our intention was to ensure she did not lose hope or give up on her education and we were glad to see her come back to school and settle back to learning quickly. She has since given her life to Christ and is now an active praise and worship leader in the Christian Union. We have also noted her leadership traits and have since appointed her as the girls’ boarding captain. 

As the school rolls out a peer counselors program, we know Anna will be a great help to many other girls who have gone through a similar experience. We want to encourage her to share her story in giving hope to others. We are thankful to God that her confidence is back and she is very hopeful of having a bright future. She aspires to be a police officer.

*Name changed

• We referred to this term as our school’s ‘defining moment’ because we hoped and trusted God to enable both the learners and the teachers to be more proactive. God is faithful because all our students are moving on to the next classes after a successful school term. 
• To help us realize our dreams, we have a three-year strategic plan that was rolled out in early May and will have an annual reflection forum every first term. This has helped us implement a number of action plans that include:
  • Conducting regular midterm quizzes across all our grades.
  • Having science practical labs on the weekends.
  • Carrying out weekly dormitory and classroom inspections.
  • Scheduling internal special co-curriculum activities or events such as joint debating, science and engineering fairs among others.
• Since January 2020, we have had mentorship programs that are scheduled two times a month. Now we are bringing together learners weekly who have similar goals under a mentor who will help them achieve their specific action plans.

• Thanks to our partners at Orphan’s Promise, the long-awaited school bus is finally here. This bus will make it possible for our girls to attend both morning and evening preps without having to make the 20 minutes walk from their dormitories to the class. It will also help teachers to plan for academic trips and co-curricular activities as soon as COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. 
  • Representatives from Orphan’s Promise together with MOHI leadership and student leaders planted 50 trees in commemoration of the bus launch and dedication ceremony.
• We enjoyed a visit from two visitors who toured our center interacting with students and staff. They also joined us for Sunday church service and were actively involved in the worship session.

• Join us as we pray for additional funds to take on the following projects:
  • With the addition of this year’s grade nine learners at the end of July we will need additional dormitory and classroom facilities.
  • At least three science labs as well as a computer lab.
• Please pray for our students who come to us with alcohol and substance abuse challenges. With our school being in a challenging area, many of our learners are older students who have not been in a classroom setting for many years.
• Pray for wisdom as we seek to address our learners’ emerging nutritional needs. A nutritional assessment found that many of our students need a nutrient-dense diet since many have not grown up eating the right food for their proper growth.