The KNOSK N100-a-day Charity Secondary School, Kuje was founded in September 2019 by Kingsley and Irene Bangwell.
It arose out of a burden we shared shortly after Nigeria became the world’s poverty capital. The first concern for us was the fact that many families were going to have their children out of school and on the track to making money for the family alongside their parents.
We were also concerned that we already had 10.5million children out of school.
The idea for starting the KNOSK N100-a-day Charity Secondary School, Kuje is to provide:
1. Access to secondary education to children from low income families for N100-a-day.
2. Access to an education that takes into cognizance the learning gaps that children from low income families experience due to inconsistent school attendance, lack of adequate learning support.
3. A type of secondary education where children’s skills are developed and 21st century skills are acquired, empowering the children to break the cycle of generational poverty.
The KNOSK N100-a-day Charity Secondary School, Kuje is funded through a social financing model where individuals and families come together to cover the cost of fees for each child.
Families pay N100-a-day, and their children get books, uniforms, one meal a day, STEAM-based education and the girls get a monthly supply of sanitary pads.
When this happens, fees come to only N6,000 per term. Between 2019 and July 2023, it has cost just N66,000 to provide education per child. When families pay N6,000, other individuals and organizations team up and donate the N60,000 left. And in many cases, sponsors have taken up the entire fees giving the families a much needed break.
This social financing allows individuals and organizations to fully sponsor or co-sponsor a child, ensuring the beneficiary doesn’t experience unwanted disruptions to schooling just because his or her parents are unable to pay the school fees.
Organizations such as the Embassy of Finland, Embassy of Ireland, Afriglobal Foundation, Reliance HMO, Max Drive, Buy Power, WOW Networks have all supported and continue to support children at the school.
Three core plans we have for the KNOSK Charity Secondary School, Kuje:
1. We want to build a learning system that adequately caters for children from low income families. We would like to publish and use this as a framework that can be used in public schools. Nigeria is currently reported to have 75% of its learners aged between 7 and 14, unable to read. While this is unfortunate, it has presented us a unique opportunity to come up with a way to teach what needs to be taught while also closing the learning gaps. We consider the KNOSK a laboratory of some sort.
2. We want to also design a unique boarding model for young people today that shapes their character and builds their sense of responsibility.
3. We also want to build literacy centers across different communities that will help children and older teens who are unable to read to learn how to read; irrespective of whether they would eventually be mainstreamed into regular secondary schools or not.
4. We have a big goal to set up 10 other centers by 2040. Our goal is to set up in densely populated communities with high poverty rates. We also take into consideration, communities where there may not be enough secondary schools.
Irene Bangwell and her husband, Kingsley are the cofounders of The KNOSK N100-a-day Secondary School, Kuje.
The KNOSK N100-a-day Secondary School, Kuje is a private-public Secondary school designed for children from low income families.
The KNOSK N100-a-day Secondary School, Kuje is Nigeria’s first pay-what-you-can, pay-as-you-go, a crowd-funded subsidized school where children from low-income families access quality action learning education that equips them with the knowledge, skills and resolve to break the cycle of poverty.
For N100-a-day, our school children get uniforms, books, lunch and the girls get sanitary pads monthly. N100 is the Nigerian equivalent of 25 cents.
Irene’s work at the KNOSK N100-a-day secondary school is contributing to address the problem of out of school children in Nigeria, the high dropout rates for poor children, where 55% of girls and 43% of boys are unable to complete secondary school.
Irene’s vision is to set up and run 30 KNOSK Schools in Nigeria and Africa by 2040.
________________________________ Prior to co-founding the KNOSK N100-a-day Charity Secondary School, Kuje, Irene worked as a curriculum reviewer and developer, teacher trainer. She designed the Education Innovation Map, a strategic tool containing 102 ideas on how to make schools and classrooms more empowering spaces. Irene also convened the Education Innovation Dialogue in Dubai. Irene Bangwell holds a first degree in Banking and Finance from University of Calabar.She also holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Education from University of Ilorin and a HarvardX Certificate in Leaders of Learning. She is also an Alumni of Founders Institute where she serves as the Vice President of Cohort III. She sits on a number of boards including School Resource Center, Abuja, Teach to Lead Initiative and Teens Empowerment and Engagement Network. Learn more about Irene Bangwell's work in education on 08090459999 09033338510 cofounder@knoskeducation.org www.knoskeducation.org
EduTimes Africa, a product of Education Times Africa, is a magazine publication that aims to lend its support to close the yawning gap in Africa's educational development.
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