Project Complete! In the video below, you can see the milk and food storage building that was created through the generous donations collected through Give Meaning - at 1:49 of 4:04 minutes into the video! See the blog section for more details on how your donations were used.
A History of Gatoto:
Gatoto School was established in 1994 by a local teacher and the village elders of Mukuru kwa Reuben, out of a concern with the growing number of children unable to attend school for lack of places and high costs. The first classes were held in a local church, where five teachers catered for 370 pupils with almost no supplies.
Over the years, various donors, individuals and the Mukuru community have contributed funds to the school’s core operating costs and physical structures, allowing it to expand and succeed. In fact, while the school was ranked last in its Division in its first year, it managed to climb up the performance ladder quickly, and by 2000 Gatoto became the best community school in the Division. Today, the school has 18 classrooms, an assembly hall, an office block, toilets and a large library. It has 25 teachers, 11 members of the support staff and 980 pupils. Students now receive 2 meals per day, counseling services and HIV/AIDS education.
Beginning in 2007, Gatoto will also begin to provide Secondary School classes for area children who are unable to afford places in the country’s expensive schools. At Gatoto, about 75% of students participate in extra-curricular activities, including drama, athletics, music, ball games, environmental club and scouting. Since 1997, Gatoto’s students have successfully competed against children from hundreds of other schools to qualify for the Nairobi sports teams. In the past four years, Gatoto has also come in first in at least one event at the National Music Festival, which draws over 70,000 participants from the entire country each year.
The school is community-initiated and managed, and gets no funding from the state. Gatoto provides all of its services for under $140 per student per year. At present, the school has secured funds to cover approximately 75% of its costs for 2007.
Transparency:
Gatoto stresses the importance of accountability and is audited each year by certified accountants. It produces financial reports, which are posted each term to the school’s website www.gatoto.org.