When Gemma Sisia witnessed the overwhelming number of Tanzanian children living in poverty and missing out on a good education back in 2002, she set out to build The School of St Jude.

The Australian-born educator started the school with three students and one teacher, and now provides a free, high quality education to more than 1800 students.

Each year, the school accepts 150 new students based on their academic potential and genuine financial need, giving the gift of education to these students to equip them with the skills and confidence to become future leaders in their communities and break out of the cycle of poverty.

Given the school does not receive any financial support from the Tanzanian Government, it relies on the generosity of the global community.

For a long time, Methodist Ladies College (MLC) in Melbourne have been fundraising for the school and raised thousands of dollars each year which helps them to buy vital resources and equipment for their classrooms.

Malcolm Davis from MLC says the school was so impressed with Sisia's work that they initially decided to commit some funds and support their teachers. They now run a study tour to the Tanzanian school each year and the girls involved in the tour spend the year raising funds to take along with them.