AGA KHAN ACADEMY MOMBASA

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Mahek Shah: Her dreams taking flight



Mahek Shah, a Diploma Programme 1 student at the Aga Khan Academy (AKA) Mombasa, has had a love of flying for as long as she can remember. As a young aviator, Mahek was driven to change the fact that aviation was a predominantly male industry. Through her Middle Years Programme (MYP) curriculum, a part of the International Baccalaureate (IB) at AKA Mombasa, Mahek was able to take her passion and turn it into Wings for Women – a project educating teenage girls in Kenya on becoming pilots.

Captain Irene Koki Mutungi – the first African female captain of the Boeing 787 “Dreamliner” aircraft – is the main source of inspiration behind Mahek’s innovative project. Learning about Captain Koki’s accomplishments influenced Mahek to create Wings for Women.

“Captain Koki encourages women to break stereotypes and work hard to achieve their dreams,” Mahek said. “She has held several motivational sessions within Kenya and has played an important role in shaping careers of numerous women.”

Wings for Women has successfully been conducting workshops in Mombasa and Nairobi. At present, Mahek’s 14-member, student-led team is focusing on expanding its reach to females across Kenya.

Born in the United Kingdom and raised in Mombasa, Mahek looks forward to attending university in the UK next year. To further her ambition of becoming a pilot, Mahek attended a 12-day summer aviation camp at Brookfield Aviation International in England. The camp comprised of flight training courses consisting of three, one-hour flight lessons in a light aircraft (Piper A28). In addition, Mahek underwent ground school training in air law, navigation and communications. She also attended aerobatic flying and helicopter lessons.

For Mahek, practising on the Emirates full motion simulators was the most challenging and exhilarating aspect of her training.

“Flying two different simulators took some getting used to,” Mahek said. “The Airbus 380 simulator used a joystick, and it was only after two trials that I managed to land the plane. The Boeing 777, on the other hand, was much easier to fly using a yoke.”

Another important facet of her training was meeting airlines and touring headquarters, as well as taking part in Safety and Emergency Procedures (SEP) Training at British Airways and visiting the British Airways Heritage Centre.

aka-kenya-mahek_shah.jpg

Mahek Shah, fifth from the bottom, attended an aviation camp at Brookfield Aviation International in the United Kingdom.
AKDN / Mahek Shah

Mahek’s passion and ambition to become a pilot has naturally progressed to a bigger mission of advocating for gender equality in her chosen field. The time Mahek spent at the aviation camp reinforced her belief that women can succeed within the field of aviation – a message she envisions Wings for Women will continue sharing across Kenya today and Africa tomorrow.

By studying the IB curriculum at the Academy, Mahek believes she’s been given the confidence to take her project forward. She also attributes her teachers at the Academy for being one of her biggest support systems.

“The Aga Khan Academies Learner Profile attributes of being open-minded and caring helped me engage with people from the aviation industry during the camp,” Mahek said. “This whole experience has enabled me to become a more ethical decision-maker, who is also very tolerant and pluralistic.”

Mahek is a student at the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa, a programme of the Aga Khan Development Network, and the first school in a network that plans to include 18 Academies across 14 countries around the world. The Aga Khan Academy Mombasa is an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School, offering an IB curriculum that is locally rooted and globally relevant. Admission to the Academy is needs-blind and based upon merit. For further information on the Academy, visit: http://www.agakhanacademies.org/mombasa

Photo at:

https://www.akdn.org/our-stories/mahek- ... ing-flight

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Cinzia Torriani: An environmentalist at Aga Khan Academy

“I saw the aquatic life in the bay that surrounded a part of the Funzi island deteriorate over time,” said Cinzia Torriani, a Diploma Programme 1 student at the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa. “Fish disappeared from the easy view of the waters; dolphins, which would appear annually, stopped appearing; and I would even hear stories of animals that were once inhabitants of the bay as now a distant memory.

“Contrary to this, the number of fishermen stayed the same, and at some point, every small fish in the ocean was being caught to feed a fisherman’s family. I realised that a majority of the motives put in place on the island for helping the environment served little purpose towards establishing a feasible way forward to ensure locals, who depend on the ocean, would remain economically stable.”

The disappearance of the fish, as well as her parents’ personal environmental initiatives, brought her to environmental activism. She focused her energy on ways that would improve the environment but also keep the local community of fishermen in mind.

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Cinzia Torriani, a Diploma Programme 1 student at the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa, has channeled her energy into becoming an environmental activist, focusing on ways to better her environment while also keeping in mind the local community.
AKA
One of the first initiatives Cinzia undertook was her Year 10 personal project, a part of the Academy’s curriculum that allows students to collaborate with individuals in their local community in order to address an issue or challenge. Cinzia created an integrated farming system, combining a fish farm, chicken farm and maize farm, which was self-sufficient. Human efficiency would be maximised; the harvest timeline would be eradicated, and locals would be provided with an alternative – and more productive – way to get fish from the ocean.
Following the completion of her personal project, Cinzia was able to spread her message about the environment even further by speaking at the 2019 TEDxYouth event held at the Academy. In her talk, Cinzia spoke about the importance of fighting complacency in order for action to be taken toward the environment, while also discussing her personal project as a way of implementing a new agricultural system.

“This was one of the most thrilling and greatest memories I hold,” Cinzia said. “I was able to use my voice as a way to spread my opinions and ideas on what mattered to me to a group of people who were interested in listening. From this, my story was published in one of the nation’s newspapers, Business Daily, about my project, my TEDx talk and my future goals. This provided me with the opportunity to convey my message about environmental sustainability to a larger audience.”

Cinzia has taken steps to further her goal and spread awareness about the environment. During the Academy’s annual Peace Summit, a two-day event that brought together students from the Academy and around Mombasa to discuss peace and conflict resolution, Cinzia was selected as the female student lead for the event. As it happened, the theme for this year’s Summit was “Climate Action for Peace”.

“The aim of the Summit was to take students through several thought-provoking and interactive activities to question their stand as activists for peace, linking this directly to the environment’s state,” Cinzia said. “From discussions on the dangers of rising sea levels, to water scarcity, to the impacts of desertification and drought, the students promoted the value of being environmentally conscious and reflecting on the actions of mankind.”

Spreading awareness about the environment through community service was also part of Cinzia’s activities. As part of the International Baccalaureate, Diploma Programme students have to create a community service group or be a part of an existing one.

“My friend and I created a community service project at the Academy called iSEAyou,” Cinzia said. “Our current goals include making use of polluted materials to create purchasable furniture and art, as well as promoting sustainable environmental development,” she says. Her goals include selling the furniture and art in ways that do not impinge on the economic standards of society.

As Cinzia decides what she wants to study when she goes to university, she said she would always be an environmental activist wherever she goes. She is forever grateful for those who have guided her to get to where she is, including the Academy. “I feel that no matter what career path I go into, it has become a joy to raise awareness on the environment and work towards more environmentally friendly systems in society,” Cinzia said.

This text was adapted from an article published on the Aga Khan Academy website.

https://www.akdn.org/our-stories/cinzia ... an-academy

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Raphael Mwachiti: A spotlight on the Aga Khan Academy Talent Identification Programme

Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noq8-BV9LR0

“When I first joined the Academy, I was a closed thinker. I never got the support to act out what I thought. But when I came to the Academy, I was shown how to be open-minded, how to be adventurous, creative, how to not just be confined into that comfort zone that limits me and what I could achieve.”

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Service learning at the Aga Khan Academies



Core to the vision and mission of the Aga Khan Academies is that students should be developed in terms of their values of giving back and contributing to the communities in which they live. This short film follows a group of students from the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa, who formed the group STEM for Growth (STEM = Science, Technology, Engineering and Math), to mentor younger students at a local school and help them gain higher achievement levels and greater confidence through hands-on experiments and activities.

Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9QK6f7GTf4

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The Aga Khan Academy Mombasa raises the bar once more with best IB results to date

Following in the footsteps of previous cohorts, the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa’s Class of 2020 received record-breaking results in the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme (DP) this year. In addition to the Academy once again scoring highly, the percentage of top scorers was also above the global average– with nine students scoring an outstanding 40 points and above. Of these, two students Muskaan Bhaidani and Alisha Doshi scored an impressive 44 points out of a possible 45.

Alisha Doshi, one of two students who scored 44 out of 45.The cohort of 67 students achieved an average score of 34.9, well above last year’s global average of 29.7. These results represent a particularly remarkable achievement, considering the rapidly-changing global circumstances as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Class of 2020 completed their DP coursework through an online learning platform, along with the encouragement and support of their teachers.

Muskaan BhaidaniMuskaan Bhaidani, one of two students who scored 44 out of 45 points.Adapting to change and rising to challenges comes naturally to Academies students. “The intentionally rigorous environment at the Academy forced me to step out of my comfort zone, every day. To choose courage over comfort, always. To not just go with the flow, but to be the flow,” said Muskaan Bhaidani, one of the top-scoring students of the cohort.

The Aga Khan Academy Mombasa strives to develop home-grown, ethical leaders working towards a shared goal of sustainable development to improve the lives of those living not only in Kenya, but across the globe. The IB programme aims to develop critical thinkers and inquirers who are courageous, principled, and open-minded. Throughout their time at the school, the Academy’s Class of 2020 have exhibited these qualities and much more. Top scorers have received admissions to a number of prestigious universities including offers at Yale and Cambridge.

Ms Alison with a few of the Class of 2020 students.Head of Academy Alison Hampshire highlighted the students’ resilience and success, saying, “We are immensely proud of this year’s class and their accomplishments during what has become a difficult and unsettling time for the global community. They had to deal with an unprecedented and unforeseen challenge, yet met it head-on, showing bravery and strength to perform well in their final assignments, which bodes well for their futures.”

Another top scorer at the Academy, Ohad Mutua, is a beneficiary of our Talent Identification Programme (TID). This programme is developed in line with the Academy’s vision to provide exceptional students with an international-standard education and leadership opportunities, regardless of their ability to pay. “I am grateful for the amazing opportunity to study at this school. The Academy made each and every learning experience one to cherish. Through the TID programme, the Academy helped me to nurture my leadership skills, and to hone them inside and outside the classroom setting, and it really equipped me with all the necessary tools to take on any challenge in the next phase of my education,” said Ohad. “I would like to express my gratitude to all my teachers and peers for their tremendous support, I could not have done it without them.” Talent ID students are selected based on academic merit and leadership potential, and receive full scholarships to attend the Academy from Year 6 onwards.

As part of its aim to develop inquiring, knowledgeable, and motivated young people, the IB programme opens doors for students to attend the top institutions of higher learning around the world. Owing to their remarkable academic achievements, students from the Class of 2020 received over USD 7 million in university scholarships. Three were awarded the Karen McKellin International Leader of Tomorrow award at the University of British Columbia, which acknowledges students with superior academic achievement, leadership skills, and involvement in community service. Another student received the Lester B. Pearson International Scholarship at the University of Toronto, which recognises student leaders with exceptional academic achievements and the potential to contribute positively to the global community.

We wish the Class of 2020 success in all their future endeavours and hope they will be back to visit soon!

https://www.agakhanacademies.org/mombas ... sults-date

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Mwanapwani Said Suleiman: A spotlight on the Aga Khan Academy Talent Identification Programme



“When I first came to this school…I was really confused of how to fit in because I came from a whole different place of different things.”
Mwanapwani Said Suleiman is amongst a diverse group of students attending the Aga Khan Academies through a full scholarship Talent Identification Programme. In this short film, she talks about how studying and living on campus at the Academy in Mombasa has helped her grown into a more confident and open-minded person. She aspires to be a doctor and work with underserved youth back in her hometown.

video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzdYRHSylWs

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As received:

Repost from: @akamombasa Our next university spotlight features Afra Ndassiwa who will be attending @unioncollege in the United States to study biochemistry. Union College is part of the “Hidden Ivies”, a group of liberal arts universities and colleges identified for their academic rigour and extremely competitive acceptance rates. Afra was offered the Presidential Scholarship, a merit-based scholarship recognising academic and personal achievement.

Join us in congratulating Afra and the rest of the Class of 2022 for their remarkable achievements! We are so proud of them and wish them the best of luck in all of their future endeavours.

#AKDN #AgaKhanAcademies #ExcellenceInEducation #IBTogether #Classof2022 @iborganization @ibalumni @akaalumni @akacademies

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Citizen Witness can report that despite being a cohort that started their International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme (DP) journey online, the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa’s Class of 2022 has received exceptional results in their IB DP examinations.

The class’s average score of 34.8 is once more well above the world average of 31.98 with two students scoring an impressive 44 out of 45, a feat achieved by less than 3% of students worldwide last year.

https://citizenwitness.co.ke/index.php/ ... y-mombasa/



“I am truly grateful for the great support and guidance from the Academy community that has helped me continue to persevere and achieve all my ambitions,” said Mishal Lalani who will be attending Middlebury College and is one of two top-scoring students.

“Spending 12 years at the Academy with such an enriching, pluralistic community helped open my eyes to many different ways of thinking and helped me become the pluralistic and open-minded individual I am today. I will always remember and continue to practice this passion and drive in life.”

The Class of 2022 have been offered over $7.5 million in scholarships to attend prestigious universities around the world including Dartmouth College, Brown University, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of British Columbia, the University of Toronto, Cardiff University, the University College London and Monash University amongst many others.



“At the Academy, I met outstanding faculty and like-minded peers who were not only ambitious and talented but also approachable in times of need,” said Jeremy Michoma, the second student to score 44 out of 45 and who will be attending Princeton University this fall.

“The intrinsically collaborative environment made it conducive for me to do way more than I had imagined was possible.

The Academy instilled in me a spirit of compassion that I will carry with me into the future.”
The Aga Khan Academies’ mission and the IB’s mission resonate in their aspirations to nurture ethical young leaders who will help create a better and more peaceful world marked by empathy and pluralism.

To this end, the Academies implement a dual-language programme to develop linguistic and cultural pluralism. For this year’s graduating class, 19 students were awarded a bilingual diploma, which is awarded to candidates who completed two DP language and literature courses.

Furuzon Atobekova, one of the students who graduated with a bilingual diploma and received a 42 on her exams, attributes her success to the resources and support she received at the

Academy. “Having graduated the IB with a bilingual diploma has enabled me to express the complex opinions one forms during the programme in multiple contexts,” Furzon said.

“The Academy supported me and other students through creative and interactive lessons as well as a provided me with a diverse library which supported me in receiving this kind of diploma.”

This year’s results represented many successes. All students in the Academy’s Talent Identification Programmes achieved the IB Diploma, with several receiving scholarships to universities around the world.

The programme is developed in line with the Academy’s vision to provide exceptional students with an international-standard education and leadership opportunities, regardless of their ability to pay.



Head of Academy Alison Hampshire describes the class as resilient and dedicated. “You are all potential changemakers, and as you leave the Academy you will be joining a global network of leaders who have graduated from the Academies.

Each of you with your special attributes bring possibility to the future.”

These accomplishments would not be possible without the hard work, dedication and support of the staff, who have accompanied these students each step of the way during their journey.

On behalf of the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa, we would like to offer our congratulations to every student within the Class of 2022 for their impressive accomplishments and wish them the best of luck in all their future endeavours.

About the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa

The Aga Khan Academy Mombasa, a programme of the Aga Khan Development Network, is the first of a network of 18 planned academies to be established across Africa, Europe, South and Central Asia, and the Middle East to provide a world-class education to exceptional students who possess strong leadership potential.

Admission to the Academy is based on merit, and financial aid is available to ensure access for students with demonstrated need. Pluralism and ethics are core values of the educational programme at the Aga Khan Academy, and the student body reflects the full diversity of East Africa, including students from all socio-economic backgrounds.

The Aga Khan Academy Mombasa is an International Baccalaureate (IB) World School, offering an IB curriculum that is locally rooted and globally relevant. Academy graduates consistently earn places and scholarships at the world’s top universities.

https://citizenwitness.co.ke/index.php/ ... b-results/

[Admin]

2024, February 19: 20th Anniversary Celebration of the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa.

Monday, 19 February 2024 at 10 am (East Africa Time) commemoration of the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa’s 20th anniversary. Watch the event live on ismaili.net or any of the following links:

• Facebook: https://fb.me/e/hauT91wy9
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/live/h23O0QT2Ydk?feature=share
• The Ismaili: https://tv.ismaili



For more pics, speech, videos of Princess Zahra at the event, please see this link: viewtopic.php?p=77235#p77235

[Admin]

https://the.akdn/en/resources-media/wha ... excellence

Aga Khan Academy Mombasa celebrates 20 years of excellence

Kenya · 19 February 2024

Photo: AKDN / Shama Hakim Manji



Mombasa, Kenya, 19 February 2024 - The Aga Khan Academy Mombasa celebrated its 20th anniversary today in the presence of Princess Zahra Aga Khan. Established in 2003, the Academy was inaugurated by His Highness the Aga Khan, the founder and chairman of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), and the former late president of Kenya, Mwai Kibaki. It is the first in an integrated, global network of residential schools known as the Aga Khan Academies, with other campuses located in Hyderabad, India, Maputo, Mozambique and Dhaka, Bangladesh.

The event was also attended by representatives of the Ministry of Education - Kenya and the Mombasa County Department of Education, AKDN leadership, donors, students and staff. It featured student performances, speeches, long service awards, staff and faculty recognitions, a cake cutting and a film viewing showcasing the Academy’s journey over the past 20 years. Following the event, guests were invited for a tour of the 18-acre campus, followed by lunch.

“Schools are optimistic places,” said Princess Zahra. “Although young people go through many challenging transitions in their lives, we aim to make the Academy a positive and memorable experience for all, one that helps young people to set the right course for their lives and build their character and attributes as leaders. The purpose of schooling here then, is not merely to support students to pass exams to enable them to enter the next phase of their education. Of course, exams are important, but the Academy embarked on a broader ambition, one that is at the heart of AKDN’s work for the betterment of society.”



“Although young people go through many challenging transitions in their lives, we aim to make the Academy a positive and memorable experience for all, one that helps young people to set the right course for their lives and build their character and attributes as leaders,” said Princess Zahra.
AKDN / Akbar Hakim

For the past 20 years, the Academy has been an integral part of the community and beyond by providing high-quality education and developing homegrown, ethical leaders. With a curriculum based on the globally recognised International Baccalaureate (IB), graduates have progressed to prestigious universities around the world, such as Yale University, African Leadership University, Tufts University, Georgetown University in Qatar and more, and have been awarded over $48 million in scholarships since 2016.

The Academies have a strong service-learning programme and encourage students to continue supporting positive changes in their communities beyond graduation. Amongst the many alumni who are contributing: Samara Visram, Class of 2014, who is building a school in Kikambala, Kenya; and Ham Serunjogi, Class of 2012, Forbes 30 Under 30 honouree who has been appointed to serve as an advisor to the US President on African diaspora engagement.

“From the beginning, the Academy has asked students not just to be leaders but to be ethical leaders,” said Head of Academy Colin Webster. “This is something the world often feels in short supply of. More than anything we prepare our students to go out and live in a pluralistic world.”

The Academy admits students based on merit, regardless of their ability to pay, with about 50 percent of the students receiving some form of financial assistance. This enables students from various socio-economic backgrounds to study at the Academy, with some joining the residential programme, which has students from Kenya, Uganda, Tajikistan, the US, Tanzania, Canada and more.

“When I came to the Academy, I was shown how to be open-minded, how to be adventurous, creative, how to not just be confined into that comfort zone that limits me and what I could achieve,” said Raphael Mwachiti, Class of 2021, who received a full scholarship for seven years through its Talent Identification Programme and is studying at the University of British Columbia.



The Academy also invests in its teachers. Weekly training on up-to-date teaching practices is provided to the faculty, 90 percent of whom are Kenyan. To have a wider impact in the country, it houses a Professional Development Centre (PDC) that invests substantially in professional learning for teachers at local government schools. Since its establishment in 2010, the PDC has partnered with over 1,500 schools in Kenya, with more than 11,150 external educators completing its programmes.



“The Academy has offered me a challenging and exciting environment,” said Mary Nyandieka, an integrated humanities and geography teacher, who has been teaching at the Academy since it was established. “Professional development has been a part of my weekly routine, which has helped me improve my teaching. The ability to be a learner, along with my students, is wonderful. The Academy is an excellent place to grow as a teacher, and a place where I have seen the most talented young men and women come through. I am happy and grateful that I have been a part of this incredible journey.”