Staff Profile: Onyo James Loshakol, Academic Coordinator

Onyo leading an academic session

Name: Onyo James Loshakol

Current Role: Academic Coordinator

Age: 26

Years Involved with Simama: 9 years (4 years as a student, 1 year as an alumni, and 4 years as staff)

Hometown: Nanyuki Town, Laikipia County, Kenya

How did you first become involved with the Simama Project? 

I first became involved with the Simama Project as a student when I earned a high school sponsorship. After a successful interview and case assessment, I was lucky enough to get sponsored and became a Simama student. 

What is your current role at Simama? 

As the Academic Coordinator for the Simama Project, I support all of the students and help them advance academically. I prepare the academic and tutoring lesson plans for the holiday tutoring sessions, organize parent meetings related to academics, draft all reports concerning academics, and plan and conduct annual school and academic checks for all the students supported by Simama. I also serve as a mathematics, physics and geography tutor for Simama students needing help in those subjects.  

What is your favorite thing about working with the Simama Project?

My favorite thing about working with the Simama Project is that it is more than an organization, it's a family with great people. The Simama principles align with my personal beliefs and I firmly believe in the mission to empower others to take control of their lives. I enjoy working for Simama because we help people change their life, their personality, their family, their community and the world in a positive way. 

From your perspective, what is the most interesting or challenging aspect of the type of work that Simama does?

As a staff member, I think the most interesting and also most challenging part is the high school sponsorship application process and assessment. Its challenging because sometimes you might get an assessment that you need to conduct in a different part of Kenya, in a very new environment. Often, in these circumstances, there are kids that seem to be in need but getting accurate information to conduct a case assessment is difficult. I find this part of the work interesting because I enjoy travelling across the country and doing a deep dive on each case. It involves a lot of observing and understanding the context and background but - God is great - because we usually find a case that really needed Simama's attention and we are able to help.

What do you like to do in your free time?

Politics, I do  a lot of civic education concerning politics and especially making sure that people understand the 2010 Kenyan Constitution because that is a guiding tool for a people who want change and representation from our elected leaders.

What is your favorite piece of Art? (painting, book, movie, TV show, play, dance, song, sculpture, etc.)

Two Books. The Flame of Freedom and An Enigma in Kenya Politics are my favorites.