Daraja 12th grader who's breaking the "traditional girl" mold

Daraja 12th grader and Jason Doherty dive into the Kenyan culture and how it directly affects the young girls there. Christine shares her story of how Daraja’s education helped save her from the FGM (female genital mutilation) and young marriage traditions of her tribe. Diving deeper into her experience at Daraja, Christine shares that her love for sports taught her how to step into her power and maximize talents she never knew she had. 

3 Key Takeaways: 

• The difference between growing up in Kenya as a girl and as a boy.
• The reality of Female Genital Mutilation for 13-year-old Kenyan girls.
• How Christine’s love for sports taught her to step into her power and maximize her talents. 

Show Notes

[0:35] Christine Introduces Herself 

·        She lives 12 hours away from Daraja near Uganda.

[1:42] Chistine shares her personal experience growing up in Kenya

·        “Look for that thing you want in life and go get it. Nothing can stop you” – Christine 

·        Survival in her home village is consists of a basic trade system where you find something to sell to cover the cost of your food for the day. 

·        “People who don’t see themselves as the victim despite their circumstances amaze me” – Jason 

[3:41] Growing up as a woman in Kenya vs. growing up as a man in Kenya.

·        At 14 years old a girl will be married off to gain wealth from those coming to marry their girls. 

·        At age 13 girls are forced to be circumcised in a very brutal painful way. 

·        The girls are told to respect their elders and accept the circumcision and marriage without question.

·        Many of these girls are traded for cattle as a dowery. 

[6:33] Jason shares the story of a student at Daraja who the father agreed to trade for one cow and 2 goats to an older man. 

·        “There are many beautiful traditions that should be kept, but some traditions that should change to make life more equitable” – Jason

·        Girl’s education helped Christine to educate her family and village about how they can improve their lives.

[8:00] Christine shares that her calling is in medicine

·        “I walked into a hospital and decided I need to be there” – Christine 

·        Jason shares how much girl’s education has actually helped the community on a much deeper level. 

·        Changing the traditional mentality that comes with Kenyan culture 

[12:02] Jason shares how some girls will go to a hospital see blood and say “whoa that’s not for me” 

·        Sometimes learning what you don’t want is more important that learning what you do want. 

·        Christine shares how busy she sees the doctors are, and they need more help. 

·        “I have the courage now. I know I can help someone.” – Christine

[15:44] Christine shares some fond memories of daraja

·        Rugby and Football have become two of her major passions.

·        She was encouraged to join one of their local teams 

·        “I’ve learned that I’m a very strong talented girl, and I can’t sit on my talent, I need to embrace it” – Christine

[20:08] Jason shares his story about relearning how to walk and running for daraja to raise funds for these girls. 

Guest Lucy Wanyingi

In this exciting episode of Daraja Means Bridge, Jason Doherty invites the first Daraja Academy student to speak of her experience in Kenya and Daraja. Lucy Wanyingi is a teenage girl on the cusp of passing her final, rigorous exams, but that is only a small part of her. After surviving a horrific accident, Lucy’s mother was rendered unable to support their family, including her baby sister. With her father traumatized by the accident, Lucy stepped up at a young age to support her family and seek out her own funding to attend highschool and ultimately graduate the only individual in her family able to support them all. 

Lucy’s wisdom beyond her years and inspiring dreams for not only the future of her family but for Kenyan women and children as a whole helps to motivate like-minded girls in Daraja Academy and brings Founder Jason Doherty to tears. Join them for this podcast and learn how much of an impact you can make by supporting just one of these brilliant young women in small and simple ways. 

In this episode you will learn:

·        What life is typically like for an uneducated Kenyan girl

·        How Daraja opened a bridge to an academy student’s future careers and familial support

·        Lucy’s indispensable experience with Daraja Academy and its staff

·        The plans of a Daraja student for future Kenya and America

 About Daraja Academy and the Podcast:

Jason and Jenni Doherty are the founders of Daraja Academy and parents to 115 current students and many alumni. Jenni comes from a family of eight children and is the first woman in her family to go to university. Jason comes from a family of five, and his passion is education.

When Jason and Jenni Doherty – educators from the Bay Area – visited Kenya in 2006, they were struck by the degree that gender determined opportunity. For families living in deep poverty, access to education was already limited, but sons were still far more likely to attend secondary school than daughters. Girls were being left behind. Thus, they started Daraja Academy.

Daraja Academy is a boarding secondary school for Kenyan girls with top academic scores and exceptional leadership skills but without the means to continue their education. The academy provides shelter, food, healthcare, and counseling services so students may focus on their academic and personal potential without the everyday barriers they would otherwise face. 

Their groundbreaking educational model has generated a community of students filled with intellectual curiosity and a hunger to learn. Through this podcast, we get to know the stories of the girls of Daraja, Daraja Academy, and all the incredible people that support and strengthen Daraja.

SUPPORT MARTHA'S EDUCATION

Donate here: https://www.daraja-academy.org/sponsor-martha/

Support from Kenya: PayBill #176037 Account name PODCAST


Connect with Daraja Means Bridge:

Website:https://www.daraja-academy.org/

Guest Student Asha

Jason Doherty is excited to invite Daraja graduate Asha back to campus to share her life experiences before and after her education at their university. Originally from east Kenya, Asha was born in a place with many insecurities, where fighting and killing over resources like water and pasture (to the point of cancelling her school days), women being abused and rapidly married off, and children becoming orphaned were all a weekly occurrence. But Asha’s determination and one rare opportunity led her down an incredible journey, one that changed with Daraja academy. 

Now, Asha affects not only her community, but every village across Kenya, where she heads up programs to improve the darkest wounds in their communities and pave a safer path for the new generations--while maintaining her university education. Join them in their discussion of how one girl’s chance to learn over just a few years resulted in a wide, invaluable economic impact. 

In this episode you will learn:

• What happens to a Kenyan woman who has no education opportunities as she ages
• Why Asha advocates for Daraja’s WISH program as a life-changer
• What would have been wasted if this particular Kenyan girl hadn’t gone to high school

About Daraja Academy and the Podcast:

Jason and Jenni Doherty are the founders of Daraja Academy and parents to 115 current students and many alumni. Jenni comes from a family of eight children and is the first woman in her family to go to university. Jason comes from a family of five, and his passion is education.

When Jason and Jenni Doherty – educators from the Bay Area – visited Kenya in 2006, they were struck by the degree that gender determined opportunity. For families living in deep poverty, access to education was already limited, but sons were still far more likely to attend secondary school than daughters. Girls were being left behind. Thus, they started Daraja Academy.

Daraja Academy is a boarding secondary school for Kenyan girls with top academic scores and exceptional leadership skills but without the means to continue their education. The academy provides shelter, food, healthcare, and counseling services so students may focus on their academic and personal potential without the everyday barriers they would otherwise face. 

Their groundbreaking educational model has generated a community of students filled with intellectual curiosity and a hunger to learn. Through this podcast, we get to know the stories of the girls of Daraja, Daraja Academy, and all the incredible people that support and strengthen Daraja.

Connect with Daraja Means Bridge:

Website:https://www.daraja-academy.org/

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/daraja-academy/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-doherty-baa9735a/

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/DarajaAcademy

Twitter:https://twitter.com/darajaacademy

Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/darajaacademy/

YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtQiWAdnakahyCnRlvWzoSA

Email:[email protected]

Be her bridge! Donate to girls' education in Kenya:

Welcome to the Daraja Means Bridge Podcast!

Join Jason Doherty in another episode of Daraja Means Bridge Podcast with guest Marty Park, Canadian entrepreneur and successful business owner of 13 companies in over 17 industries. Marty shares the invaluable information he’s culminated over his career for alumni beginning their entrepreneurial careers and college students looking to expand their side hustle. Marty divulges practices that brought him success, both through smart business moves and effective mental framing. In this episode, Marty also honestly reveals the close-to-ruined financial situation of his beginning years as an entrepreneur, and uncovers some of the cliches surrounding the classic image of “the entrepreneur.”

In this episode you will learn:

• Marty’s passion and success gleaned from business Coaching
• The invaluable skills you learn as you consciously chose to be an entrepreneur
• Where to start once you’ve got a business idea; The main question to ask when setting up a business
• Facing what scares you alongside what you’re passionate about
• The persistence and strength of Daraja girls as entrepreneurs

About Daraja Academy and the Podcast:

Jason and Jenni Doherty are the founders of Daraja Academy and parents to 115 current students and many alumni. Jenni comes from a family of eight children and is the first woman in her family to go to university. Jason comes from a family of five, and his passion is education.

When Jason and Jenni Doherty – educators from the Bay Area – visited Kenya in 2006, they were struck by the degree that gender determined opportunity. For families living in deep poverty, access to education was already limited, but sons were still far more likely to attend secondary school than daughters. Girls were being left behind. Thus, they started Daraja Academy.

Daraja Academy is a boarding secondary school for Kenyan girls with top academic scores and exceptional leadership skills but without the means to continue their education. The academy provides shelter, food, healthcare, and counseling services so students may focus on their academic and personal potential without the everyday barriers they would otherwise face. 

Their groundbreaking educational model has generated a community of students filled with intellectual curiosity and a hunger to learn. Through this podcast, we get to know the stories of the girls of Daraja, Daraja Academy, and all the incredible people that support and strengthen Daraja.

 

Connect with Daraja Means Bridge:

Website:https://www.daraja-academy.org/

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/daraja-academy/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-doherty-baa9735a/

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/DarajaAcademy

Twitter:https://twitter.com/darajaacademy

Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/darajaacademy/

YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtQiWAdnakahyCnRlvWzoSA

Email:[email protected]

Be her bridge! Donate to girls' education in Kenya:

https://www.daraja-academy.org/donate/

Welcome to the Daraja Means Bridge Podcast!

In this three-part inaugural episode, your host Jason Doherty tells the incredible story of the founding of Daraja Academy, a secondary school for under-privileged girls in Kenya.

This is one episode you won't want to miss!

To join the fight for girl's education join us at:

https://daraja.org/donate/


About Your Host
 
Blessed founder Daraja Academy. Daraja is changing the world by educating and empowering girls of material poverty that wouldn't have moved on to High School. Our students and alumni are courageous change makers that view themselves a part of the solution rather than victims of circumstance.
 
 Over 90% of our students who would not have moved from 8th to 9th grade matriculate to college and university, disrupting the cycle of poverty on a generational level. I believe that education should be a right, not a privilege because it is the bridge (daraja in Swahili) to a better life for the individual, their families, community and the world.
 
 Every year Daraja turns away more deserving girls than it can accept, until that changes I will fight to provide every girl possible with the quality education she deserves and needs. JOIN ME!
 
 SHE BELIEVED SHE COULD AND SO SHE DID... AND DID, AND DID, AND DID!!!

Welcome to the Daraja Means Bridge Podcast!

In this three-part inaugural episode, your host Jason Doherty tells the incredible story of the founding of Daraja Academy, a secondary school for under-privileged girls in Kenya.

This is one episode you won't want to miss!

To join the fight for girl's education join us at:

https://daraja.org/donate/


About Your Host
 
Blessed founder Daraja Academy. Daraja is changing the world by educating and empowering girls of material poverty that wouldn't have moved on to High School. Our students and alumni are courageous change makers that view themselves a part of the solution rather than victims of circumstance.
 
 Over 90% of our students who would not have moved from 8th to 9th grade matriculate to college and university, disrupting the cycle of poverty on a generational level. I believe that education should be a right, not a privilege because it is the bridge (daraja in Swahili) to a better life for the individual, their families, community and the world.
 
 Every year Daraja turns away more deserving girls than it can accept, until that changes I will fight to provide every girl possible with the quality education she deserves and needs. JOIN ME!
 
 SHE BELIEVED SHE COULD AND SO SHE DID... AND DID, AND DID, AND DID!!!

Welcome to the Daraja Means Bridge Podcast!

In this three-part inaugural episode, your host Jason Doherty tells the incredible story of the founding of Daraja Academy, a secondary school for under-privileged girls in Kenya.

This is one episode you won't want to miss!

To join the fight for girl's education join us at:

https://daraja.org/donate/


About Your Host

Blessed founder Daraja Academy. Daraja is changing the world by educating and empowering girls of material poverty that wouldn't have moved on to High School. Our students and alumni are courageous change makers that view themselves a part of the solution rather than victims of circumstance.

Over 90% of our students who would not have moved from 8th to 9th grade matriculate to college and university, disrupting the cycle of poverty on a generational level. I believe that education should be a right, not a privilege because it is the bridge (daraja in Swahili) to a better life for the individual, their families, community and the world.

Every year Daraja turns away more deserving girls than it can accept, until that changes I will fight to provide every girl possible with the quality education she deserves and needs. JOIN ME!

SHE BELIEVED SHE COULD AND SO SHE DID... AND DID, AND DID, AND DID!!!