Tanzania
The Need
CIA Data (2018) ranks Tanzania as 6th in the world for highest HIV/AIDS prevalence rate. Schoolgirls are at an increased risk of contracting HIV/AIDS when forced to walk great distances to school or attend school in where society does not value them as equals to their male counterpart. Still, many girls desperately want an education so that they can create better lives for themselves and their families. After several years of visiting and working with women and girls in Tanzania through graduate work, one of our board members conducted research and found that a potential “solution” to barriers faced in accessing education could be construction of a private boarding school for girls. This way, barriers girls face (walking to school, harassment by male teachers and male students) could be prevented.
The Vision and Goal
We want to see hope, redemption, and transformation take place in this island district of Tanzania, located within Lake Victoria. The vision for Tumaini Jipya {New Hope} Secondary Girls’ School is that every pupil has the opportunity to receive a high-quality education, free of abuse and injustice, in a Christ honoring atmosphere that allows them to thrive. We long for these girls to know that they are deeply loved and were created by God for a purpose. Together with trusted partners and local community leaders, ROCK is committed to help open this girls’ school in an effort to shine the light of the gospel into their lives; ROCK is excited to be a channel for the funds that will bring this school to fruition.
Update: December 2023
Dear Friends,
As 2023 draws to a close, our hearts are full of gratitude. This time last year we were still fervently praying that everything would continue to come together for a January 2023 opening. Praise God, by His grace everything did! Thank you for joining us in prayer and coming alongside to help support — through sponsoring a teacher salary, sponsoring a student, donating monthly to help with overhead costs, contributing on Giving Tuesday (we received almost $19,000 of the $25,000 goal!), sending along supplies, or simply encouraging us along the way…we are beyond grateful!
Tumaini Jipya will be starting year two in less than two weeks! The school is on break for Christmas now, but will reopen January 8th for returning (Form 2) students and a crop of new (Form 1) students! Eighteen Form 1 students have already committed and several others are signed up to take the entrance exam. Please pray the Tumaini Jipya staff will have wisdom to know who to accept into the new class of students.
We are recruiting scholarships for incoming students…We are continuing the “tiered tuition” model, where girls coming from the neediest families are fully sponsored ($50/month), those with less need receiving partial scholarships ($25/month). Others will pay tuition with the help of their families, churches, or communities. Our goal is to fully sponsor at least 15 of the new students. If you are already sponsoring a student, we ask that you prayerfully consider continuing to sponsor her second year. If you are interested in providing a scholarship for a new student, please set up a recurring (monthly) donation with ROCK International and mention “student sponsorship” in the comments section. This is our most pressing need right now…thank you in advance for considering how you can help.
We are also excited to report that the Tanzanian church partner was able to find someone to donate and install solar panels! This is a huge gift and means that the electricity will be able to be much more reliable (no black-out days!) and will cut down overhead costs. We are so grateful!
Join us in prayer and praise:
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Praise God for providing all that was needed for a successful first year — teachers, support staff, supplies, and, of course – STUDENTS!
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Please pray for protection for the students while they are home on break.
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Pray for wisdom around accepting incoming students — who to accept, who to turn away, who to fully sponsor, etc.
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A few students will not be returning to Tumaini Jipya next year, mostly because they did not pass their exams and would have to repeat Form 1. These girls decided they would rather not repeat or that they would rather go to the government school (where there is little supervision). We know there is a high likelihood that these girls will not return to secondary school at all. Please pray that their lives were still impacted by the Truth they learned at Tumaini Jipya and that they would still go on to have flourishing lives.
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Please pray the Lord will continue to provide all that is needed for 2024!