During the first week of January, nine months after Kenyan schools closed in March 2020, all grade levels returned to the Jane Adeny Memorial School campus. We are very happy to report that 100% of JAMS students are accounted for. Only four of them have not returned, due to health issues; we hope and pray that they will return sometime this year. This rate of return to school is a significant accomplishment for a Kenyan school, particularly one serving the neediest of students.

This success is due to the hard work of the school principal and teachers and to the generous financial support of everyone who gave to the JAMS COVID Emergency Fund. This Fund made it possible for the teachers to do long-distance instruction and wellness checks with students by phone during the school closure (learn more HERE). While most students in Kenya did not receive any online learning, our students continued to feel connected to JAMS and hopeful about their educations.

“I was very happy because our teachers provided revision papers that kept me busy and to concentrate on my studies as I used to be at school. What they did made me different from other students who used to walk around with no purpose and for that I thank the teachers for their concern.” –D., Class of 2021

Principal Kibet reports that the students are more excited about schoolwork now, compared to before the closures. He says, “the kids just want to read.”

Students in Forms One, Two, and Three (first-year through juniors) have begun their second term of the 2020 School Year, having completed term one back in March 2020. The new academic calendar announced by the Kenya Ministry of Education plans for the completion of the third and final term of the 2020 School Year in mid-July, with the 2021 School Year beginning on July 26, 2021, and running until March 4, 2022.

Since they were able to return to school for about two months at the end of 2020, students in Form Four (seniors) are now preparing for their national graduation exams, the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE). The KCSE covers all four years of high school, so the students are busy reviewing all subject areas, practicing scientific experiments in Sparks Lab, writing practice essays, and doing math problems. The KCSE is crucial for their future opportunities, such as vocational college or university. The Form Fours will take the graduation exams in March.