In 1999, Dominic and Rose Mukwaya created St. Paul KAASO Primary School to enable young orphans to get a decent education – at no cost. The school began with just 12 children and by the end of the first year there were 49 students.
Classes were taught in a thatched roof hut and resources were extremely limited, but Dominic and Rose persevered. Their mission was to ensure that even those unable to pay school fees would get the education they deserved. Over time, KAASO’s reputation spread and parents wanted to send their children to the school. In order to be sustainable, Dominic and Rose agreed to take in these fee-paying students, helping to boost the school’s income and supplement the orphans. While KAASO helps to provide free education to orphans, it is not an orphanage and care is taken to ensure boarding students return home to their families or guardians during the school holidays.
Today, KAASO educates over 600 primary school children every year, charging fees only to those who can afford to pay and supporting those who cannot, with a whole raft of students in the middle whose families offer food or services in return for their child’s education. As one of the top schools in the district, KAASO provides a high level of education and academic excellence not commonly available to those unable to pay school fees. Thanks to KAASO, students who would otherwise have struggled to go to school now have a truly bright future.