USC Rossier Professor visits Tanzanian primary school founded by alumna

Rob Filback recently visited the Endupoto Primary School founded by Cheryl Kyle ’62. The following is a photo essay of his trip.

By Rob Filback Published on June 17, 2013

I recently traveled into the Maasai Steppe near Arusha, Tanzania to visit the Endupoto Primary School. Getting to Endupoto required not just our driver, Frank, from JM Tours, but an elder from Endupoto to ride along and guide the way.

Tanzanian Primary School — Endupoto school in view with Mt. Meru (14,997 ft.) visible in background

Endupoto Primary school was established in 2008 and serves 239 students. For more about the history of the school and Cheryl’s involvement, see “Alumna Builds a Miracle in the Bush” in the Spring 2013 Futures in Urban Ed magazine.

What captured my attention, from an educational development perspective, was the community ownership and public-private collaboration that have emerged at Endupoto Primary School. Endupoto is supported in three ways: through charitable funds raised in the U.S., by the Tanzanian government, and through funds, provisions, and direct involvement from the surrounding Maasai community.

Teachers at the Tanzanian Primary School — Of the seven current teachers pictured in this photo, three are paid by the government, while four are supported through charitable donations.

School cook at the Tanzanian Primary School — The government also provides for a school cook.

School book at the Tanzanian Primary School — The curriculum is also government provided.

From the community side, the Maasai elders have exerted leadership from school’s inception. They made the original request for the school and have been a constant presence in the school’s development and operation.

Tanzanian Primary School adults join classroom activities — Elders joined us during our classroom observations.

Tanzanian Primary School Rainwater Storage — A Water Committee comprised of Maasai elders oversees the capture of rain-water from roofs.

Tanzanian Primary School adults maintaining quality control — The Building Committee oversees all buildings including ensuring quality control. Here is the newly completed dining hall.

Tanzanian Primary School Head of Tree Committee — Here is a Maasai elder who heads the Tree Committee. Trees must be planted and constantly tended to in the Maasai Steppe, or grassland, which is typically dry from June to November.

Maasai families provide benches for children in school. — The Maasai families also supply the classroom benches, provide student uniforms, and cover a small annual fee.

The total annual cost for families is around $17.00 USD per student (uniforms are $12.50 USD and the annual school fee about $5.00 USD). For perspective, some approximate costs to families of students at other schools in the Arusha area include:

$30 USD/year for cook and security fee, uniform, and materials at a neighboring government rural school
$65 USD/year for fees, supplies, uniform at a government school in the city
$300 USD/year for fees and supplies at lower end private schools in the city
$500 USD/year for English medium private school in the city
$3000-$8000 USD/year for international schools in city

Community Involvement at the Tanzanian Primary School — The community involvement and support at Endupoto school stands in sharp relief in the rural area in which the school is located. The results are observable in practical ways: cleanliness, desks in order, unbroken glass in all of the windows, bulletin boards in use.

Broken window at the Tanzanian Primary school — This can be contrasted with the closest neighboring school we visited, which exhibited typical features such as broken window panes, disheveled rooms, and unrepaired floors.

Broken benches at the Tanzanian Primary School

Driver managed to repair a broken swing at the Tanzanian Primary School — Toward the end of the day, Frank, our driver, and I managed to repair a broken tire swing for the students.

Children using the repaired swing at the Tanzanian School — It was quickly put to use.

The collaboration and support I observed at Endupoto Primary School was inspiring. The partnership between outside supporters, government, and, most significantly, the highly engaged local Maasai community at Endupoto, may provide a model that other rural schools in Tanzania can learn from.