Saving Girls: CNN Hero Kakenya Ntaiya

TBT: KakenyaNtaiya was set to follow the traditional path of girls born in the small village of Enoosaen, Kenya. Engaged at the age of 5, she was to participate in the traditional Maasai rite as a young teenager and then be married.

Kakenya made a deal with her father, She would undergo the traditional rite if he would let her go to high school.. …when she was accepted to Randolph-Macon Women’s College in Virginia, she negotiated with her village elders to do what no girl had ever done before, leave her village to go to college in the US.

Deeply proud of her heritage and of her community, Ntaiya returned to the village after school and worked with her elders to establish a school for girls there. It’s the educational journey that has altered the destiny of many young women. In 2009 the KakenyaCenterforExcellence was established by Kakenya they have A primary grade boarding school just for girls, the curriculum focuses on academics, leadership and female empowerment, along with cultural preservation and life skills. Ntaiya also works with donors to provide scholarships for others.

“Be the first, because people will follow you. Be bold. Stand up. Be fearless – Kakenya
Watch Kakenya Ntaiya on TEDx

What an inspiration!

Credit: Kakenya Ntaiya/CNN Heros