THE MAMA MIKAL ASOL SCHOLARSHIP FUND
2011-2016
The Okela School Charities based in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, USA, is sponsoring two scholarships in honor of Mama Mikal Asol of Okela Village located in Bondo District, Kenya.  Mama Mikal was born on July 7, 1930 in Kisumu District and has spent most of her adult life in Okela village where she married Mzee Christopher Asol Okeno and raised ten children.  A well respected community and church leader, Mama Mikal has served as a role model for the young girls and women of Okela Village through her leadership and commitment to her community.  She and her husband were among the founding members of Okela Primary and Secondary Schools, and she continues to support the school system through community organizing and networking.  She is also the founder of St. Stephen’s Okela Church, affiliated with the Anglican Church of Kenya, where she served as a church minister in charge of family and adult ministries from 1978-2005.  The Mama Mikal Asol Scholarship has been awarded to two high-achieving students from the Okela Secondary School wh embody the virtues of community service for rural development. The scholarships will help support them in attaining a bachelor’s degree at a Kenyan public university. All funding is obtained and managed by the Board of Directors of Okela School Charities, USA.

Meet Our Two Scholarship Recipients

My name is Rodgers Oyugi Kogah. I hail from Okela village, Madiany Division, Siaya County in Kenya. I am a son to Mr. William Obat Kogah and Mrs. Hellen Achieng Kogah. I have a brother (presently in form four at Okela Mixed Secondary School) and a sister. My parents are peasant farmers. I sat for my Kenya Certificate of Primary Education at Kobonyo Primary School (a local school) in 2005 where I obtained 395 marks out of a possible 500 marks. I later joined Okela Mixed Secondary School in 2006.There I struggled through thick and thin, in spite of financial difficulties until I sat for my K.C.S.E examinations in 2009  and managed an A-(minus) of 76 points with; A (plain) in Mathematics, Chemistry Physics Biology and Agriculture; B+ (plus) in Geography and B (plain) in English and Kiswahili. This secured me an opportunity at Southeastern University collage (A constituent collage of the University of Nairobi) in Kitui. Here I would wish to pursue a Bachelors Degree in Economics and Statistics.

My main goal upon graduation is to help the needy. I am planning to set up an Orphanage at Okela village for the orphaned children. This will enable them develop morally spiritually and academically so as to enable them reach their dreams in life. I am also planning (through networking with well-wishers and other organizations e.g. Mama Mikal Asol Scholarship Fund) to support students with fee problems. I believe this will help see them through their academic life hence make them realize their goals in life .I am also planning to improve the learning facilities at Okela Mixed Secondary and Primary school. I hope to this by; equipping the science laboratory with modern equipment, books donation and improvement of classrooms. I believe these will transform both the Okela Schools and the community at large. I would like to see a future where the Okela Community is luminating with the light of education, a home of Professors, Economists, Doctors, Engineers, e.g. where poverty is forgotten by this Kenya will be built into prosperous country. It is my belief it will be possible by the grace of God.

Yours sincerely,

RODGERS OYUGI KOGAH

My name is Jescah Atieno Achola. I hail from Okela village, Madiany Division, Siaya County in Kenya. I am a daughter to the late Mr. Eliud Achola Assesa and Mrs. Maurine Awino Achola. I have 2 brothers and one sister who have finished high school and my younger sister is in class three at St. Oda, Aluor Girls Primary for the blind.. My Mother is a peasant farmer. I sat for my Kenya Certificate of Primary Education at Okela Primary School (a local school) in 2006 where I obtained 319 marks out of a possible 500 marks. I later joined Okela Mixed Secondary School in 2007.There I struggled through thick and thin, in spite of financial difficulties until I sat for my K.C.S.E examinations in 2010 and managed a B (plain) of 64 points with; B (plain) in Mathematics, Biology, English and Kiswahili. C (plain) in Chemistry, C + (plus) Physics, A – (minus) Business Studies and B+ (plus) in History. I hope this will help me secure me a chance in any University come next year as I had applied for a chance to study Bachelor of Arts .

My main goal upon graduation in 2017 is to help the Orphaned and Vulnerable children since there are quiet a great number of them in our community. After Graduation, Rogers and I are planning to work hand in hand to set up an Orphanage at Okela village for the orphaned children. This will enable them develop morally spiritually and academically so as to enable them reach their dreams in life. We are also planning (through networking with well-wishers and other organizations e.g. Mama Mikal Asol Scholarship Fund) to support students with fee problems. I believe this will help see them through their academic life hence make them realize their goals in life .I am also planning to support Girls in Okela Secondary School by Donating to them sanitary towels since most girls are unable to afford them and during their monthly periods some don’t come to school and hence miss some lessons making them to perform poorly. I believe these will transform both the Okela Schools and the community at large. I would like to see a future where the Okela Community is laminating with the light of education, a home of Professors, Economists, Doctors, and Engineers, e.g. where poverty is forgotten by this Kenya will be built into prosperous country. It is my belief it will be possible by the grace of God.

Yours sincerely,

JESCAH ATIENO ACHOLA

• Terms of University Scholarships

  • Okela School Charities will pay partial tuition for two students, one male and one female, for four years. One student will begin in 2011 and the other in 2012.
  • The two students have been selected by virtue of attaining the top scores on the KCSE exam in 2010 and 2011, earning themselves government assistance with tuition.
  • If the scholarship recipients fail to graduate in four years, they will be expected to find alternative sources of funding to complete their degree. The charity will not meet the cost of failed exams or disorderly conduct leading to suspension.
  • Tuition alone will be provided, not books, materials, dorm room furnishings, or spending money. The students and their families will be expected to pay these expenses or to find other sponsors to help, for example, the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) provided by the government of Kenya.
  • Okela School Charities will send funds directly to the recipients’ universities, not to the recipients themselves or their families.
  • University scholarship recipients will be required to submit a letter of introduction to the Okela School Charities Board including the following:
    • Brief biography of student and his/her family
    • Goals for the future
    • Plans after graduation to give back to the community
    • Information about the University they will be attending
    • Amount of tuition and a contact person at the school.
    • A recent picture
    • During their stay at the university, scholarship recipients will be required to submit end-of-semester reports to the Board.

  General information

  • Okela School Charities strongly encourages Okela leaders and parents to expand this scholarship opportunity to reach out to other deserving children in the community through fundraising and other income-generating projects.
  • Should Okela School Charities have the means to continue offering scholarships after the 2011-2016 cycle, they will sponsor male and female students equally.
  • Recipients of the scholarship must be residents of Okela village and have completed their four years of high school education at Okela Secondary School leading to successful completion of the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exam.
  • Further requirements will be made available if and when funding is assured. The Okela School Charities reserves all rights to revise these requirements under the guidance of the board of directors.