In January 2025, we awarded our first cohort of twelve scholarships to secondary and tertiary students in Lagos State. The selection process was rigorous and community-driven — nominations came from local community development associations, and final selections were made by a committee that included a teacher, a community elder, and a former beneficiary of an international education program.
The students range in age from 15 to 22. Six are in secondary school; four are in university; two are in vocational institutions. Their fields of study include nursing, electrical engineering, fashion design, and business administration. What they share is extraordinary potential and the very real obstacle of school fees they cannot afford.
We do not see scholarships as charity. We see them as an investment with a return — measured not in financial terms, but in professionals who will serve their communities, entrepreneurs who will create jobs, and parents who will ensure their own children never face the same choice between food and school.
Our scholarship program is designed to be more than money. Each recipient is paired with a mentor, receives quarterly check-ins from our team, and is connected to a growing alumni network. We are building a community of people who got a hand up and will extend that hand to others.
Applications for the 2026 cohort will open in October 2025. We plan to expand to 50 scholarships in the next cycle, with a focus on girls in STEM fields and students in northern Nigerian states.