Crossroads Springs Africa Inc
Enriching lives through education in Kenya
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
In Kenya, where we work, the expenses for secondary education are beyond the reach of the families or guardians of the disadvantaged, often orphaned, students we work with. As a result, these students are not able to enter secondary school even though they have qualified on the Kenyan Certificate of Primary Education exam to do so.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Secondary Education Sponsorships
We partner with Friends of Kakamega and Kakamega Care Centre and with individual sponsors to provide support for tuition, fees, supplies and other expenses enabling critically poor high needs students from the Hamisi and Kakamega areas of Kenya to attend secondary school in Kenya. These students are counseled and assisted through KOCC staff in Kenya.
Post-secondary Education Sponsorships
We support support all Form Four graduates from our secondary education program who qualify on Kenya certificate of Secondary Education exams for university. We also support as many as possible who qualify for certificate and diploma programs.
Where we work
External reviews
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Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Working with sponsors and donors and through our fundraising events, we provide the necessary support for disadvantaged students from the Hamisi and Kakamega areas of Western Kenya to get the secondary school education now so necessary in Kenya. We work with staff in Kakamega and an Advisory Committee in Hamisi to choose 30 students per year to enter Form One. We also work through the staff in Kakamega to see that the students get the social and academic support they need throughout their education.
We also aim to provide support for post-secondary education and opportunities for those students we have supported whose Kenyan Certificate of Secondary education exam scores qualify them.
Our long run goal is to make sure that the supported students, who would otherwise have no opportunity for education beyond Grade 8, are effectively educated and that they develop the skills necessary to support themselves and help others, becoming a key source of economic and leadership strength in their communities.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
We now work with 3 staff members in Kakamega who not only supervise choice of students, payment of tuition and fees, but also meet with them several times a year, hold an annual Retreat in December with workshops covering such topics as life skills, relationships, health, substance abuse, HIV, leadership and integrity, as well as games, contests, awards and a talent night. In addition they provide social and academic support to individual students as needed.
We recruit individual sponsors for most of the students, using fundraising events and foundation funding to support the others as needed and to pay the salaries and expenses of the staff in Kenya.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We have been able to obtain sponsorship and funding for at least 120 secondary school students in any given year, maintaining sponsorship relations and running several major fundraising events each year. We also maintain a partnership with the Segal Family Foundation which contributes substantially to funding our work.
In addition we have recently established a Post-secondary Education Fund, initiated through a bequest from an international educator and further developed through foundation funding and individual donors.
We work with Kakamega Orphans Care Centre in Kakamega, Kenya and their partner nonprofit Friends of Kakamega based in Maine, USA. We have at least one Board member or Board Associate each year who visits Kakamega Orphan Care Centre and meets with the staff and with students we support during their summer break.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
For three years now we have been able to support 120 students each year and are now also supporting five more students for post-secondary education (2 in University and 3 in certificate or diploma college programs). We expect to support those five and an even greater number in post-secondary education in the coming academic year.
Ten percent of the first group of graduates qualified for University on the Kenyan certificate of Secondary Education exam. Last year thirty percent of the second class of graduates, having been advised and supported by the staff in Kakamega, qualified for University (well above the national average).
We are now working on setting up connections to follow the alumni and alumnae to both see how they are succeeding and to help them stay connected and have an opportunity to "give back" to the program.
We hope to provide more support for post-secondary education and also some support for families and guardians in the Hamisi and Kakamega communities.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
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- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Crossroads Springs Africa Inc
Board of directorsas of 06/11/2020
Alison Hyde
Crossroads Springs Africa
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Not applicable -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No