Season of Loss and Renewal

A message from our Co-Founder and CEO, Elizabeth Dearborn Hughes

Last week, I shared the painful news with our team that we will be saying goodbye to 25 of our colleagues in Rwanda.

It’s been a challenging season of loss AND energizing renewal.

Students and staff pivoted to online learning amid the pandemic

In 2018/19, we rapidly grew our team for expansion in Africa and Asia. We hired incredible people to create the curriculum, tech, and systems to offer transformational education to thousands of students. These positions and teams were funded through expansion grants.

When the lockdown in Rwanda began, we chose to pause expansion (and the related funding) and focus on pivoting online and the success of our current students during a tumultuous time.

2 recent developments have made it impossible to sustain our current team.

1. Our students struggled to pay tuition due to financial pressure from lockdown. Our team created payment plans & creative solutions to ensure minimal disruption to their studies. Unfortunately, this has a material impact on our finances

Budget:

Tuition = 30%

Donors = 70%

2. Student financing is a vital part of our model. It allows low-income students to defer tuition until they launch their careers.

We are proud of our 12-year track record of serving students who cannot afford higher education.

In 2020, the unexpected loss of Income Share Agreements (ISAs) from our financing partner resulted in a sharp decrease in expected enrollment/ tuition revenue.

This continued in 2021 and hundreds of students were unable to enroll due to the lack of financing.

The costs of the ISA program are much higher than previous years and therefore we can only admit a much smaller intake of new students than desired.

We are committed to financial sustainability, an imperative underscored by our regulators, and we must reduce our expenses.

Our impacted colleagues will depart in July. We are eager to assist with introductions and references to help them launch the next season of their career.

Please let me know if you are looking for exceptional talent in Rwanda.

We look forward to graduating our Class of 2020

This is a difficult decision as we value every one of our beloved colleagues. This team played an instrumental role in our success over the past year.

Our class of 2020 will graduate only several months late. 95% have completed their internships.

This season of slowing down is temporary. We hope to bring back our colleagues once the conditions are more favorable for expansion and serving many students across Africa.

This season is an opportunity for deep reflection and growth.

We have been making big changes in our operating structure and investing in the leadership development of our team. I look forward to sharing more about this soon.

Hint: www.Holacracy.org

To our dear students from the Classes of 2021/ 22, and incoming Class of 2023, these changes will not affect your education whatsoever.

We are steadfastly committed to your professional, emotional, and spiritual growth and look forward to a tremendous year. ⭐️