Still I Rise was born to address a specific need: to educate and support minors living in the Samos hotspot, the refugee camp on the island of Samos, Greece. Here we opened Mazí, the first youth center for children and adolescents on the island, where we offer education, food, therapy and a safe place to escape from the horrors of the camp. In Samos we have developed a school model with the initiative to rehabilitate traumatized and deprived minors by providing them the opportunity to secure a better future for themselves.

Now we are opening high quality international schools in nations that have become the destinations or long term transit spaces for migrants. By doing so, we are exporting the values and the educational and teaching techniques developed in Mazí. Our international schools offer a global education to the most destitute by awarding them an internationally recognized diploma upon graduation. It is a concept that no organization has ever implemented before.

In  Kenya, and also soon in Colombia and Italy we are opening internationally accredited schools. Our curriculum begins with a preparatory year, in which students participate in a rigorous and holistic educational experience in order to elevate their knowledge and skills, encourage them to reclaim their hopes and dreams, and to prepare them for the international program. Then, students will begin six years of study in an international curriculum, designed to equip them with the knowledge, skills, confidence, and diploma to enroll in quality institutions of higher education and to apply for competitive positions.

We strongly believe that one student, one teacher, one book and one pen can change the world. We are building schools in order to make it happen.