Hands of Hope Scholarships

Hands of Hope Scholarships

School Supplies

Even the Government of Uganda has instituted Universal Primary and Secondary Education, most secondary schools continue to be funded through tuition payments.  Households with limited resources and many to care for are not able to afford tuition and exam fees, the $10 needed for school uniforms, the $0.50 needed for a pencil and a notebook, the expected contribution of food to the school for school lunches or money for construction projects. Schools operate hand-to-mouth, just like the families they serve.  Because of Universal Primary Education (UPE), 85% of children over the age of 6 are enrolled in primary school and only 16% of secondary aged youth are enrolled in secondary schools.  Classrooms are overcrowded, there are fewer trained teachers per pupil, and there is a lack of learning materials.  The student to teacher ratio is 84:1.  In rural schools, children do not have access to textbooks, teaching is by lecture, and learning is by rote to prepare for national exams.  Fewer than half of primary leavers advance to secondary school.

The Hands of Hope Scholarship Program makes it possible for impoverished youth to continue their education.  Our students attend St. Denis Senior Secondary School, St. Bernard's College, St. Charles Lwanga Technical Training College, Rakai Nursing School, and various other vocational and tertiary institutions and colleges.  Without the assistance of scholarship sponsors, these young people would be unlikely to study beyond primary school level and would return to cultivate their family farms.


Learn more about our scholarship program.

 

Educating Girls

"If you educate a boy, you educate an individual.  If you educate a girl, you educate a village."

-African proverb.

Naluwugge JaneAccording to UNICEF, "Education is vital to ensuring a better quality of life for all children and a better world for all people." However, the key to achieving a better quality of life for the greatest number of people is to educate a girl.  As the glue that holds both families and the community together, women around the world are in a unique position to directly impact the quality of life of their families and their society.  Educated girls tend to marry later and have healthier children who are better nourished and more likely to go to school. A girl who is educated beyond primary school gains skills she can use to earn a better living and lift herself and her younger siblings out of poverty.  An educated girl will know how to protect herself against diseases such as HIV/AIDS and while she is at school she will be less likely to be given away in marriage.  An education will give a girl a wider view of her role in society and help her become a more active leader and participant in her community.

 

Into Your Hands takes an active role in ensuring that girls in the Makondo community receive an education.  By providing girls with boarding scholarships, Into Your Hands reduces the risks girls face in the daily commute to and from home.  As boarders, the girls have better access to their teachers and educational materials for additional help.  The added benefit of having electricity in the school library allows for the girls to study after dark.

 

Learn  more about our students.