Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Education signs off pledge to support his alma matter and launches the #GoBackGiveBack Campaign in Kenya
We are excited to be able to announce that the Association of Alumni Communities in Kenya (AACK) (#AlumniCommunitiesKE) was launched on 29th May, 2017 at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development by Dr. Fred Matiang’i, the Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.
Dr Matiang’i commended the Association for taking civic responsibility to build a culture of involvement in strengthening the public education systems which eventually enriches institutions, enhances accountability and transparency. Making a speech at the launch, Dr. Matiang’i gave 2 policy directives to be implemented by his ministry:
- He asked the Director General of the Ministry of Education to take over the Alumni Association as part of her critical programmes
- He pledged to engage with the Alumni Communities on statutory and policy issues touching on better learning outcomes for Kenyan school children.
Just like all other professional associations, AACK will endeavour to create a conducive environment for the mainstreaming of alumni initiatives from the grass roots level to the national platform. This will be done through opportunities for continuous professional development on matters of alumni, forums for peer to peer learning and networking, and through provision of mentorship and support for alumni networks to build thriving alumni communities.
Participants listen keenly to Dr. Matiang’i’s speech
The launch of the association carried with it a call for Kenyans from all walks of life to #GoBackGiveBack at their former schools. Dr. Matiang’i signed the alumni pledge and promised to participate in the alumni activities of his alma mater, Kisii High School. In his pledge, he committed to:
i) take part in a student mentorship event
ii) offer professional support
iii) give a career talk
He also pledged to commit the education directors in his ministry to follow suit. In line with Dr. Matiang’i’s pledge, 89 of the participants at the launch signed pledges to support their old schools. As a run up to the launch of the campaign, we led in facilitating alumni from different schools in Migori county in different initiatives that were centred around supporting schools and students. See our blogs about this for more information on these exciting events and activities
Alumni Leadership Programme
The launch of the association was also a culmination and a point of celebration for participants of the Alumni Leadership Program cohort 1, who also graduated on the day. The participants had gone through an intensive 6 month-long leadership program with 36 hours of class room time covering 12 different sessions, and we are so excited to see what they can achieve as they take what they have learnt from the leadership programme to develop alumni programmes to support their old schools! We’ll keep you posted!
Program participants, showing off their certificates for participation in the Alumni Leadership Program.