Recently, a group of Friends of HALI collaborated to engage with HALI (high-achieving, low-income) students and access organizations in Kenya. This initiative was part of a broader outreach program organized by the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at USIU-Africa, which hosted three partner universities: the University of Pretoria, the University of Rwanda, and Ashesi University. These institutions aimed to create awareness about full-cost tertiary education scholarships available to high-achieving, low-income students under the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program.
The outreach lasted five days, during which time they visited three different HALI organizations, including Shining Hope for Communities (SHOFCO), DARAJA, and Education For All Children (EFAC) and other schools and organizations in Kenya.
It was like a Valentine's gift to us. We had the University of Pretoria, the University of Rwanda, Ashesi University, and USIU-A in the house! They interacted with over 100 of our scholars, including our refugee cohort.
Mary Kiguru
Education For All Children
This collaborative effort ensures that we gain from the knowledge built around and among the network members. I do not need to know everything; I just need to know who is within the network. Thank you!
Mary Kiguru
Education For All Children
The outreach allowed the university reps to experience firsthand what it means to be a HALI student and how small application fees make it impossible to even apply for scholarships or to higher education institutions,
Amy
SHOFCO
Additionally, the one-on-one, face-to-face interactions during the outreach allowed admissions representatives and counselors to build meaningful relationships, making it easier to address individual concerns and provide support, even after returning to virtual communication.
Collaboration during the outreach activities allowed the universities to exchange ideas and best practices in their recruitment and selection process. This knowledge exchange strengthened their outreach efforts and enhanced their understanding of Kenyan applicants' unique challenges. The outreach not only benefited the partner universities and the HALI Organizations but also had a profound impact on the students and communities it reached.
One of our objectives as a network is to facilitate connections and build bridges to bring opportunities closer to the students who do not have access. Through collaboration, Friends and Members of HALI are living this aspiration and finding ways to support each other's work and expand access. We celebrate this effort by MasterCard Foundation partner universities and other Friends of HALI who can visit access organizations and interact with their students to understand their context better.
