Daraja Academy: Every girl has the right to an education to improve her life, family, and community.

Jenni and Jason Doherty founded Daraja around this core belief. When Jason and Jenni – educators from the San Francisco Bay Area – visited Kenya in 2006, they immediately noticed the degree to which gender determined educational opportunity.

And they saw that without a secondary education,Kenyan girls were at a disadvantage. Because girls lacked the opportunities that result from secondary education, they faced early marriage and pregnancies and were unlikely to attract the professional opportunities that engender economic self-sufficiency.

For Kenyan girls, secondary education is the fastest bridge out of poverty.

The Dohertys realized they could take action toward a solution by committing to establishing a school for exceptional girls who had no other means of continuing their education.

When they partnered with Victoria Gichuhi, a Kenyan educator who today serves as Daraja Academy’s Head of School, the vision for the school became clear. Victoria’s leadership and experience in Kenya meant that the Dohertys had a partner who could brilliantly navigate local laws and policies. Together, they conceptualized a boarding school that addresses girls’ physical needs, provides a rigorous academic curriculum, and bolsters her as a woman and leader. They named the school Daraja, which means bridge, and sought to fill it with girls from all over Kenya whose potential would otherwise be lost.