PRESS RELEASE Nairobi, Kenya (10 September 2014) Bridge International Academies is pleased to announce the opening of 56 new academies to mark the start of Term 3, bringing the low-cost school chain’s total to 359 academies.
PRESS RELEASE Nairobi, Kenya (10 September 2014) Bridge International Academies is pleased to announce the opening of 56 new academies to mark the start of Term 3, bringing the low-cost school chain’s total to 359 academies. With over 100,000 pupils admitted, approximately 1 out of every 100 ECD and primary-aged children in Kenya attend Bridge International Academies!
The Kenyan company, which opened its first academy in just 2009, brings high-quality education to families living below the international poverty line of Sh175 ($2) a day per person; the average Bridge family lives on just Sh140 ($1.60) a day per person. Since day one, Bridge has seen dramatic results. Bridge pupils score an average of 35% higher on core reading skills and 19% higher in maths than their peers in neighbouring schools, based on USAID-designed exams administered by an independent monitoring and evaluation company – this translates to almost a full additional year of learning for every year a child is enrolled at Bridge! Bridge pupils also excel in co-curriculars, with dozens making it to the National Music Festival held last month in Mombasa. In fact, Bridge Class 6 pupil Annete Sheila was the national champion in the Solo Verse Competition. Meanwhile, thanks to economies of scale, parents pay just Sh380-830 ($4-9.50) a month. Villages in Kenya, as well as abroad, are writing Bridge letters, requesting that a Bridge International Academy open in their village so that they too can benefit from high-quality education.
“We are proud of our achievements to date, but eager to do more,” said Bridge International Academies Co-Founder and CEO, Jay Kimmelman. “There are still millions of children who are not getting the education they deserve. Every child is filled with so much potential. At Bridge, we want to give every child on earth the opportunity to fulfill that potential – and democratize their right to succeed.”
Bridge International Academies plans to reach an additional 150 communities in Kenya in 2015, in addition to expanding internationally to Uganda, Nigeria, and India so that more families living in poverty can benefit from the Bridge effect as well. Bridge, which currently operates ECD and Classes 1-7 in Kenya, will add Class 8 in 2015 with Bridge pupils sitting KCPE for the first time in November 2015. Bridge looks forward to placing many children from low-income communities into top national – and international – secondary schools!