Racheal Wanjiru is a School Director of Still I Rise International school in Nairobi. Born in Timboroa, a small town in the west of Kenya, she has had many roles over the years - she was a kindergarten teacher and university tutor - and ran a school for three years before coming to us.
When she met Still I Rise, she immediately wanted to join our team: "Starting the first international school for refugee and forgotten children in Africa was very important to me. I took this opportunity as soon as I had the chance".
Her goal as a director is to make every student and employee know that they are heard and appreciated, so she pays special attention to relationships. Every morning she has a care gesture for the students: “Good morning, how is your home? Are you ready for this day?” This simple yet profound set of questions enabled her to create fluidity of communication and acquaintances with the students. She shared: “When you can call someone by name, that individual feels valued and knows that you believe in them”.
Throughout her years of teaching and now directing, her biggest lesson learned is the act of kindness: “Kindness is when you allow others to be themselves, no matter how they are. Despite the differences of nationalities from a variety of countries, you can all be together, learning, growing and becoming”.
As a director she supports fifty-one young girls every day. She has provided the school to have a Child Protection Officer who is a woman. Every Saturday the female staff and the student gather voluntarily as a community. Each meeting creates the space for this young woman to feel empowered and to understand for themselves what it means to be a girl and a woman in this world today. She provides the young girls to learn, hear and grow from the examples of the older woman. These women act as their tangible role models. Her desire with each gathering of her girls’ group, is to let them know that they all have equal opportunities to become leaders.
Racheal Wanjiru, is a remarkable woman and a great example to us all. She faces the daily challanges with true grace, courage, boldness and compassion. Her advice for any woman out in the world today, it is to believe in yourself, to dream big and to go ahead and fulfill your true purpose in this life. There is nothing that can stop a woman, young or old to accomplish outstanding work.
Written by: Steffy Mathew
