My Experience Volunteering at SEGA
Volunteering at SEGA is a great way to have a positive impact on the lives of the students. SEGA offers week-long or three-month service learning opportunities for volunteers that offer capacity-building skills such as English as a Foreign Language (EFL), Information and Communication Technology (ICT), and Marketing and Communications. Volunteers can also take part in our annual English Fluency Program which runs every fall in October/November to teach English at the school.
Due to COVID-19 the SEGA campus is currently closed to overseas volunteers, however if you are interested in volunteering at SEGA in the future, please email us at info@nurturingmindsinafrica.org
Written by Ella McCausland.
When I arrived at SEGA in the fall of 2019, I immediately knew that it was a special place and that I would never experience something just like that again. The Uluguru Mountains reached into the clouds at one end of campus, and the clear sky stretched on forever. The air was sweet, and the ground thrummed rhythmically as the students welcomed me and the other visitors with a boisterous song and dance, orange dust rising into a hazy cloud at their feet.
I decided to volunteer at SEGA during my gap year after high school. The founder, Polly Dolan, is a close family friend of mine, and I had visited her in Tanzania with my mom and brothers when I was much younger. Coming back to SEGA over 6 years later, the growth of the campus was shocking, but I was comforted to see the painted water tower that I had contributed to as a young person and to hear the familiar distant laughter of students at the netball court. It felt simultaneously like stumbling into a new world and like coming home.
Ella with Form 1 students on Bonanza day.
Form 1 students in Art Club.
During my two month stay at SEGA, I worked as an English Fluency teacher for the Pre-Form 1 students. I co-taught an English intensive course that covered conversational and grammatical English, helping the students reinforce their English skills to prepare for the English language immersion they would have to adjust to upon entering Form 1. We incorporated quizzes and written assignments to prepare our students for secondary school as well as games, group projects, and song and dance to stimulate their creative young minds. It was definitely challenging, and at times exhausting, but I was inspired and motivated by my students. Every day, regardless of how tired they were from studying or sports or the general woes of youth, they came to class engaged and eager to learn. These young women, some as young as 11 years old, truly saw the value of their education, and they listened and learned with pure joy. It was beautiful to watch each of my students come out of her shell, losing her fear of being wrong and instead pursuing her love of trying her best, and seeing them foster collaboration to help uplift each other.
Something very special about SEGA is the bond that forms between students. They come from all parts of Tanzania and all walks of life, but most have the shared experience of heartbreak, hardship, or trauma connecting them. For these young girls leaving home, SEGA becomes their oasis and their “sisters” as they call each other become their family. As a middle child sandwiched between two boys, I always dreamed of having a sister, and the SEGA students welcomed me into their hearts with open arms and glowing smiles. We adopted nicknames for each other, traded dance moves, and drew portraits of each other during art club. I never felt lonely even thousands of miles away from everyone I knew.
Outside of class, I spent time with the students and other volunteers playing volleyball and netball, teaching ukulele, and sharing stories. In the evenings, I would often sit with the girls while they studied and answer questions or teach extra lessons. I also had the opportunity to travel off campus and explore the markets of Morogoro on the weekends, attend a Modern Girl Outreach event at a neighboring village with the Form 3 students, and I even spent a weekend at Mikumi National Park with two other volunteers my age where we saw elephants, hippos, and even lion cubs.
Ella helping Form 1 students with their English.
Ella (right) and her fellow volunteer Pauline (left) with SEGA Headmistress Elly (center) at the 2019 graduation.
When it was finally time to depart from SEGA, I was very emotional. I had grown so close to the students, volunteers, teachers and staff, and the campus, it felt like leaving a part of myself behind. Luckily, I didn’t have to stay away for long, and I returned to SEGA in February for another month and a half to volunteer with the Communications department. It was so much fun surprising the students at assembly with my return, and I savored every moment until my untimely COVID-19 evacuation. During my second stay, I spent most of my time helping in the office, proofreading students’ letters to their sponsors, and creating visual aids for classrooms. I also helped run the art club on Tuesdays and taught remedial English to Form 1 students. I had much more freedom to tailor my remedial classes to my students’ needs, and it became what my students and I looked forward to every day. When I had to return home in March, it was equally as sad but a bit less heart wrenching. I now knew that I would always have a home and sisters at SEGA.
I think the secret to the incredible energy that SEGA emanates is the basic philosophy of the school. The students are uplifted by each other and taught to uplift themselves. They are allowed to explore their passions and learn entrepreneurial skills simultaneously with their national curriculum. SEGA prepares its students to not only succeed and thrive but to share their knowledge and use their skills to make the world a better place. From the persuasive student-led Saturday night debates to the collective singing that fills campus during Friday religious services, the thoughtfulness of each teacher and the tenacity of each student, SEGA exudes passion. I hope to return to see my Preform 1 students graduate in 2023, and for the rest of my life I will continue to carry the spirit of SEGA.
I recently received a packet of letters from my students discussing their studies and sports, inquiring about my family and love life, and asking me to return soon. The letters brought me to tears and reminded me how lucky I am to have had the opportunity to connect with these girls who I know will be my lifelong sisters.
I cannot encourage anyone enough to get involved with SEGA, whether that be sponsoring a student’s education and keeping correspondence with them through letters, volunteering directly at the school, or fundraising in your community.
SEGA girls will change the world, I have no doubt about it.
SEGA athletes celebrating after winning the 7 legged race at Bonanza day.
Form 1 students playing ukulele in their free time.