When you support St Jude’s, you aren’t just providing free education to the poorest and brightest students in Arusha. You’re supporting almost 300 talented, dedicated staff members committed to fighting poverty in their community.
In our Staff Spotlight series you get the chance to meet these impressive members of the St Jude’s family.
Meet Sebastian – One of our dedicated Social Studies teachers for our upper primary students (History, Geography and Civics) and serving as our Academic Master for Upper Primary. In the Tanzanian curriculum Social Studies covers Geography, History and Civics. Mr Sebastian is also sharing what he has learnt at St Jude’s with local government schools, helping St Jude’s continue to have a wider impact in our community.
In a rare moment of pause during his busy daily schedule, Mr Sebastian Gitbang catches himself by surprise when he thinks about the time that has passed since started at The School of St Jude in 2006.
"It’s almost been 10 years, that’s a long time actually when I think about it,” he says.
“When I joined the school it was not as big as it is now, I feel as if I have grown up with the school.”
It has been a career that Mr Sebastian could not have predicted when he was hired and asked which classes he would like to teach.
“My first priority was to teach Maths, my second was Science and third was Social Studies. But when I started, I had the chance to join the Social Studies department and I was also given the chance to be the Head of Department. So I took the position, and from then until now I have been teaching Social Studies”.
It is a decision Mr Sebastian has been happy with ever since.
“Social Studies is about life,” he explains.
“It is all about living, human beings and the environment, which is all around us. It helps give our students good and basic skills for their lives. These are the subjects that if you teach the students you are teaching them practical skills. They learn how to live a good life and about things that are important.”
Coming up to nearly a decade at the school, Mr Sebastian is able to think about the small things that have had a lasting impact on the school.
“When I started I was given the chance to come up with new things, like the drumming you see around the school at assembly for the national anthem and other school songs,” he says.
Hundreds of international visitors enter our school gates each year and the lively drumming at assemblies is always one of the highlights.
Mr Sebastian is also having an impact outside of St Jude’s. He has been involved in a community program that offers teacher mentoring and training to local government schools.
“St Jude’s has made me who I am, so I thought I should share the knowledge and the skills I got at St Jude’s with my fellow Tanzanian teachers because they don’t learn what we do here”.
At St Jude’s, we believe that we should facilitate and assist improvements in teaching and learning in Tanzania. In fact this is our eighth strategic goal. Mr Sebastian is helping us achieve this and has been having success, “for the past five years the performance of the Government Schools has improved, compared to the way it was before”.
Mr Sebastian is inspired by Gemma and the St Jude’s community and is proud to have been part of the team and the wider impact on the community. “St Jude’s was just a dream of one person, Gemma, but look at the students who are here. Where would they be if not for her dream? Or the staff where would they be, if not for that dream. It started as just a dream but you can see what an impact it has made and how much our society has benefited”.
Want to help St Jude’s have qualified, passionate teachers like Mr Sebastian? Donate to teaching today!
Graduate, teacher and future doctor, Dorice is wrapping up her Community Service Year as the sole biology teacher at Sombetini Secondary School.
In 2016, this young leader charmed Australians on tour with Gemma and captured the hearts of her students with her grace and resilience.
We caught up with Dorice to hear about her experience as a teacher.
How are you feeling now that your Community Service Year is coming to an end?
In some ways I feel really good, really excited because I know I am soon going to start another journey in my life. In other ways I feel very sad because of my students. I will really miss them! As you know there is a shortage of teachers and when I leave I don’t know if they are going to have another biology teacher.
What has been the most challenging part of your job?
There is a very big difference, a very huge difference between government school and my education. At St Jude’s we have small classes, few students and enough teachers. We have electricity in classes, computers, and food at every mealtime. Here it is different, the classes have no electricity, and there are too many students – the books are also hard to get.
Most of the students when I came for the first time – they never knew English, so it was very hard. You know biology, it is all in English. Teaching them in English and then translating in Swahili, it was a very difficult thing. The differences now with my students learning in English is huge. Most of them are putting their hands up and speaking so much English.
Did you think you could master all this, at the beginning?
For the first time, I was scared. I went home the first day, I told my parents, “I don’t think I can do it”, because it is very hard to be in front of a class of 60 students. My parents they were advising me and giving me hope saying “you can do it”. So I said “OK, I will have to do it and do it will all my heart because I chose it and I want to help these students”. Now I feel so good. I feel so proud of myself!
How do you think this year has changed you as a person?
Actually I feel like I am really grown up now because of dealing with different types of students, different personalities, and other teachers who are much older than me. Now I know I can face different situations and I can make tough decisions. So I feel like I have changed a lot.
I feel I can live and change to any kind of environment. Life in government schools is very hard but I can do it. For example, I can now stay for a long time without eating and still perform my responsibilities, which is a good thing actually.
How do your students feel about you leaving for university?
They say how much they will miss me because the way I live with them and treat them is more like a big sister. It’s different with the other teachers. When my students have problems they come and tell me and if I am capable I will always help them. They say when I leave they don’t know how they are going to find some answers in their lives, especially girls, they are more comfortable talking to me.
What is your proudest accomplishment as a teacher?
Now I can see most of my students have a real goal in their life. Last year when I came, I asked my class, “who wants to be doctors?” They were all quiet. “Who wants to be teachers?” They were all quiet. They didn’t understand themselves, what they wanted, or how they could think about their future.
The way I talked to them and advised them over this year I think is why they come to me and tell me, “in university I want to study this” or “in VETA college I want to study this”. So I feel like somehow they have seen what is going on in their lives and how they can have some power in that through education.
You may remember Vivian from our Staff Spotlight last month.
The outstanding role model is perfectly placed as a coordinator in our Beyond St Jude’s team. Her St Jude’s duties include supporting graduates through their Community Service Year, offering career guidance and assisting with university, loan and scholarship applications.
Vivian has recently returned from the United States where she was presenting on the accomplishments of our school and students to cement St Jude’s participation in the MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program at African Leadership Academy.
The trip was a huge success!
“We are so excited, this partnership opens up a whole world of opportunities for our graduates, quite literally,” Vivian said.
Joining the Program means that, every year, up to five fully funded scholarships are available to our most impressive students at partner universities all over the world!
On her tour de force, Vivian had the chance to visit some of these universities that our graduates will be eligible for as part of the program.
“The universities I visited in the United States were amazing. It took me over an hour and a half to finish a campus tour. I can’t imagine what it will be like for our students to set foot on campuses in Mauritius, Germany, Canada, Kenya or Zimbabwe!”
“Did you know, Hillary Clinton went to Wellesley University? I visited there as well as Trinity College and Marist College – beautiful universities. Who knows one of our graduates may be the first female President of Tanzania!”
At all these venues she made connections, shared St Jude’s story and asked a million questions for our students.
“I am so excited for our hardworking applicants; scholars who are accepted into the program will have the full cost of their university education covered; from textbooks, a laptop and a mobile phone, to visas and flights, including trips home for the summer,” Vivian said.
The program also offers ongoing academic, pre-professional and personal support for the participants. This support will continue with professional development from the African Careers Network after graduation from university.
Students who are chosen will have demonstrated academic excellence, strong leadership skills and evidenced the ability to bring their ideas to life.
Like St Jude’s, the MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program at African Leadership Academy believes in supporting the future leaders of Tanzania and Africa.
After graduation, the scholarship students will be required to return to Tanzania and share all that they have learnt at universities around the world with their communities.
We are so excited about this partnership and look forward to all that we know our graduates will achieve, thanks in part to the work of Vivian and the Beyond St Jude’s team!
Help St Jude’s continue to offer its students the best opportunities by donating today.
Eunice Mtili was born to teach.
“When I was very young, whenever I would share or explain something, I would give examples and demonstrate, moving my hands, everyone would say, you would make a very good teacher,” Eunice said.
Through the course of a 21-year teaching career, Mrs Mtili has proven everyone right, channeling her natural talent into educating thoughtful and resilient students who love to learn.
“I am really sharp, I know I am very fast, and I want everyone to be fast in my classes, I want smart, cheery, quick, happy people,” she said.
This is an ambitious goal in Tanzania where the government school system is overcrowded and under-resourced. The World Bank reports 23% of government school teachers don’t show up for work on a given day (2012).
St Jude’s offers Eunice the resources and support to be the best teacher she can be.
Since arriving in 2011, Eunice has taken full advantage of the small class sizes and extended curriculum which lends itself to vibrant demonstrations and opportunities to “learn by doing”.
She currently teaches social studies at our primary campus.
“The first thing I do to introduce social studies is explain to students why I am teaching them these things, social studies is ultimately preparing them to become good leaders.”
“So in geography, I say, how will you become a leader if you don’t know your area, its resources and geographical features?
“In civics, as we expect leaders to conduct development, I say, 'how would you use the features and natural resources of your areas for development?'. We also role play elections and speeches."
“In history, we learn about independence and why we are living like this. So I show them examples of good leaders and the ones who failed.”
Eunice is helping St Jude’s create good leaders and, after five years, she is starting to see the fruits of her labour.
“I have many students at St Jude’s who come back to me and tell me how much they appreciate, and how often they think of my classes; they say they were really unique,” she said.
“The ones who are in Form 2, they are all in leadership positions now!”
St Jude’s is also helping Eunice grow her own leadership and teaching skills.
The magnificent Mrs Mtili was recently selected by a panel of her peers to participate in a professional development partnership in the United States.
Later this year, she will engage in educational workshops, mentoring and training with teachers from Louisville Collegiate, which has a long running relationship with St Jude's.
Eunice says she is hoping to come back from the States as the best teacher she can possibly be.
“With new skills, new knowledge and better understanding of how children learn, so that I can teach best.”
A passion for science is in St Judes' DNA.
Following our three consecutive, successful years competing in the Tanzania Young Scientist (TYS) competition, sponsor and major electricity supplier Songas has awarded St Jude’s a special Passion for Science Award.
“This is a major honour for our school,” St Jude’s Head of Department for Physics and Assistant Academic Master Nzinyangwa Mcharo said.
“For the past six years, St Jude’s has shown its passion for science through the annual Science Day, which brings together young scientists from around the region to work on projects that will solve the problems facing many Tanzanians.
“We are so honoured Songas has recognised our Passion for Science and this award will inspire our students to continue the work they’ve been doing.”
Songas also awarded St Jude’s 2.5million Tanzanian Shillings (Tsh), which was used to purchase two desktop computers.
The awards kept rolling in for 2015 Science Fair winners Venance and Martin, who earned a 400,000Tsh prize from Songas for their Smart House with Raspberry Pi entry.
It’s another exciting step for Venance, who has been at St Jude’s since Standard 1 (Grade 1) and always valued his education, using his time to pursue passions for science, computers and engineering.
It’s no wonder he and Martin are good friends, as Martin also began at St Jude’s in Standard 1 and is enthusiastic about engineering and physics.
Having come from homes without plumbing and electricity, both students’ families have also instilled the value of hard work. This, combined with dedication to their high-quality educations, has seen Martin and Venance on track to successful futures.
When their TYS entry took out first place in the Technology category last year, it capped off a great run in national science recognition for St Jude’s. Ntekaniwa and Hashim won a special award for SMS Voting software the year before and in 2013 Liston and Riziki won second prize in the Technology category for their Hybrid Generator.
St Jude’s has emerged as a national leader in science, with last year’s inaugural Form 6 graduates placing in the top 10% of chemistry, physics and advanced mathematics in the national exams.
Tanzania Young Scientists’ Dr Goziberth Kamugisha, Songas Ltd representative Dr Mkodo and Songas Community Relations officer Nichodemus Chipakapaka came to our secondary campus in February to personally deliver the special award and speak to students.
Support St Jude’s commitment to academic excellent by donating here, and keep an eye out for more on our 2016 Science Day in late April.
St Jude’s is raising the standard of essay writing in Tanzania, with our students taking out six of the top 10 spots in a recent national competition.
Our talented students placed 1st to 3rd and 5th to 7th at the 2015 annual World Standard Day Essay Competitions ceremony in Dar Es Salaam. The competition is open to all secondary school students, college and higher learning institution students under 35 years and pursuing their studies in Tanzania.
The win is yet another example of how St Jude’s is battling, and winning, Tanzania’s education crisis.
Our students regularly win national and international essay competitions and are consistently ranked in the top 10% in national exams.
The achievement is even more amazing considering our students come from some of the poorest families in Tanzania, where only 7% of people have a secondary education.
Form 5 student Ayubu finished 1st, followed by 2nd-placed Pius (Form 5), 3rd-placed Arnold (Form 6), 5th-placed Denis M (Form 4), 6th-placed Denis T (Form 5) and 7th-placed Damson (Form 5).
Quietly spoken and shy about their achievement, the six students explained how they were able to complete their entries in just “a couple of weeks” after the competition theme was changed last-minute.
“Our essays were all about Standards: The World’s Common Language,” Denis T said.
The six students were proudly acknowledged and cheered during an afternoon assembly upon their return from the three-day trip to Dar, where they were accompanied by teacher Lightness Isojick. The top three were presented with high-tech rewards - Ayubu with a tablet for his efforts, Pius a laptop and Arnold a smart phone.
Lightness, who often coordinates academic competition entries for St Jude’s, was very proud of how they performed.
“(The students) have done so well. Everyone wanted to know the secret behind our victory,” she said.
Lightness responded by reminding people of St Jude’s track record in the annual competition – six top 10 students in 2012 (including Denis T, who came second) and three last year (including Pius).
She said it would not have been possible without the support from school management, and so many individuals who can “share our students’ victory, and that is the best reward we could get”.
Help us create the next generation of Tanzanian leaders. Donate to The School of St Jude.
