The annual Yale Young African Scholars (YYAS) program was held in July and was virtual this year because of COVID precautions. It is a free, intensive, academic and enrichment program for African secondary school students who plan to continue into tertiary education and hope to make meaningful impacts as young leaders and engaged citizens.

This year, three SEGA graduates and one current SEGA student were accepted to YYAS. We had a chance to talk to Elina about her experience at SEGA and then at YYAS. Thank you, Elina, for sharing your story with us!

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Amplify is a collective of community-driven organizations collaborating to create a community-based alternative to traditional development scale. Amplify partners collaborate to share best practices, develop community driven metrics and create large scale joint advocacy campaigns in order to elevate the unparalleled impact that community-driven organizations have in transforming the lives of adolescent girls.

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SEGA’s students work hard for excellent grades. They know they can only complete and graduate high school if they do well. But, what gives them almost as much (if not more) joy than getting good grades? Seeing Rhona Deusdery Mtega with letters for them from their sponsors!

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For students still perfecting their English, en·tre·pre·neur·ship is a big, huge word! But, they learn quickly to pronounce it and understand its meaning because of the critical skills they learn in the program. For two weeks, every June after exams are completed, Form III students learn not only the theory behind profit-making programs, but also practical skills that they can take with them when they leave SEGA. They are divided into three groups and rotate through three programs: School Shop, Poultry and Sewing.

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Being a mother or a maternal figure is often seen as the hardest job in the world. The selfless acts and love they provide are the cornerstones of many individuals, families, communities, and societies. As we celebrate mothers and maternal figures this Mother’s Day, we are excited to highlight an extraordinary SEGA mother who is changing the lives of young mothers in Tanzania. Jackie Leonard Bombama’s story is one of incredible strength, perseverance, and love.

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As we celebrate International Mother Earth Day, adopted by the UN in 2009, we wanted to call attention to how climate change adversely and disproportionately impacts women and girls, and to elevate that women are also critical drivers of climate solutions and positive change (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change). Educating girls is ranked as an effective climate solution, more effective than electric cars, various types of solar, offshore wind, wave and tidal power according to Resilience.org and Drawdown.org.

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As SEGA Co-founder and women and girls’ advocate Blastus Mwizarubi heads into retirement we are thrilled to welcome SEGA’s first female Tanzanian Director, Laina John Mwandoloma. We know the importance of female leadership in creating positive pathways, mentorship and role models for the SEGA girls. We asked Laina to share in her own words what prepared her for this role, what it means to her to become SEGA’s director and where she will take the organization moving forward.

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Due to the rapid increase in the number of people getting extremely ill and dying in Tanzania since January, SEGA’s COVID-19 Task Force met at the beginning of March to discuss the status of the virus and reinstate all of the previously loosened safety precautions that had been put in place last June to protect SEGA students and staff, graduate mentors, and Modern Girl Program staff and club participants.

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Internationally, the month of February pays tribute each year to Women and Girls in Science. This is particularly pertinent in Tanzania because, according to UNESCO, women there represent 40 percent of university enrollment, but only about 24 percent are enrolled in science, engineering and technology fields.

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January always marks new beginnings and this is especially true at SEGA where they started their new academic year with 69 Form 1 girls on January 11. The new students are excited to be a part of the SEGA sisterhood and are settling in well. Having completed a three-month English Fluency Program on-campus in the fall they are feeling ready to tackle the challenges of learning in English which is for many their third language.

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In our rapidly evolving and connected world, computers are often essential for academic success. Some of the many benefits a student receives when provided access to a laptop include the ability to take notes digitally, interact with peers and collaborate on projects, gain access to a broad range of academic research, and use word processing tools to complete their assignments.

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SEGA’s English Fluency program was started in 2015 by Nurturing Minds’ founding board member, Sherley Young to help SEGA’s youngest students quickly learn to speak and understand English using a stress-free method of drama, games, music, and activities. The goal of the English Fluency program is for girls to have confidence in speaking and understanding English so they can be successful in secondary school.

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Pauline Rusisye is the Education for Life (ELF) Coordinator & School Counselor at SEGA. If you talk to Pauline, you will immediately feel her deep emotional commitment to her work, the girls she serves, and for SEGA, where she has been since January 2011. When asked what people should know about her, she says “I am passionate and a little bit tough. I love to see things happen fairly. I love most and I smile a lot.”

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If any further proof is needed about the resiliency of our SEGA students, then look no further than the October 31 graduation ceremony. After five years of concentrated study, from Pre-Form through Form 4, SEGA’s eighth graduating class of 55 students were jubilant at their accomplishment!

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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.

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As a board member of Nurturing Minds, Sherley Young has been making valuable contributions to our organization for many years. In addition to her generous financial contributions, she has introduced many influential and passionate friends to SEGA. Many of these introductions have led to new volunteers and financial support for Nurturing Minds and the school. One such introduction was to Dr. Jean Merrill who, like Sherley, is a Smith College graduate.

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Meet Luambano Ahmad, one of the multitasking, hard-working members of the SEGA Girls’ School staff. When he joined SEGA in 2016, his responsibilities were as a Geography and History teacher. It wasn't long, though, before his natural leadership skills were recognized. He was quickly promoted to Assistant Academic Master and then Academic Master. Currently, he has achieved the rank of Deputy Head of School, while still teaching geography.

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