In this newsletter

  1. DirectEd Lions Fundraiser for Ethiopia
  2. Kenya Bootcamp Graduation Ceremony
  3. First National TV Interview
  4. Application Portal Demo
  5. First DirectEd Donor Plate at Mang’U High
  6. First Blockchain-Enabled Charity in the World
  7. DirectEd at the Cardano Summit 2023
  8. Next up in October and November

DirectEd Lions Fundraiser for Ethiopia

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After nearly a year of dialogue with Kotebe University of Education, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed in December 2022 stating our intention to jointly develop and pilot a highly-scalable and cost-effective coding programme. Watch footage from this event here.

And so in August, graduates from partner high schools in Ethiopia joined our inaugural Intro Course. Students only need a mobile phone to take this course. However, to effectively learn software development, our students need laptops.

For this reason, we launched the DirectEd Lions crowdfunding campaign. As a donor, you can fund a full Access Scholarship, giving the student a laptop, WiFi and a stipend to cover other necessary expenses. Learn more about the programme or the DirectEd Lions, and donate now via https://app.directed.dev/directed-donate.

DirectEd Scholars Kenya 2023 Graduation

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We're excited to share a memorable moment from August 16th when our inaugural cohort of DirectEd Scholars received certificates of completion after 3 long months of late nights and early mornings. The event took place at the prestigious Kenyatta University venues, with a number of distinguished guest speakers sharing insights with the students.

Shahaf Bar-Geffen, CEO of COTI, spoke about the opportunities enabled by technology in a world that is shrinking thanks to the power of the internet. Izzat-Begum B. Rajan, Chair of the Board of Trustees, spoke about the use and utility potential of blockchain technology. Dr. George Kosimbei, Chief of Party at YALI East Africa, encouraged student leadership while Dr. Margaret Muturi, Director of the Center for Career Development Programmes at Kenyatta University, emphasized that theory and practice must go hand-in-hand.