St. Laurent Nursery School
Musha, Rwanda
The St. Laurent Nursery School began as the vision of Marceline Nirere, a Rwandan mother of four. Realizing the importance of education and the benefits of starting early, Marceline began offering free nursery school to the children in her village in 2003. Focusing on letters and numbers in all three of Rwanda’s national languages, Kinyarwanda, French, and English, Marceline was able to offer the local children an incredible head start on their educational journey. After practicing the alphabet and numbers, the students participated in singing and dancing, allowing them to develop both their social skills along with their academic skills.
2009 - Construction
With funds raised by Westwood Collegiate students in Winnipeg, Canada, Marceline and Amanda were able to locally source construction materials and hire community members for the construction of the school. In the end, Marceline and Amanda were able to build two classrooms and equip them with benches, chalkboards and beautiful, educational murals. Additionally, toilets were installed and a field was cleared for singing and dancing.
2008 - Introductions
When GO! Founder, Amanda Furst was introduced to Marceline, she amazed by what she saw. As a trained teacher herself, Amanda was in awe of Marceline’s abilities to instruct over 80 little students in such a small space, with limited resources available. Amanda and Marceline decided to collaborate to bring to life Marceline’s vision of being able to provide the students with a real classroom experience.
2013 - Expansions
The official building opened its doors in February 2009. Though modest in the beginning, the nursery school quickly expanded to include a second teacher and increased student enrollment. Phase 2 of the project began in 2013 with funds raised by seven students from University of Edinburgh as part of the Edinburgh Global Partnership (EGP).
The university students came to Rwanda to partner with local community members to build a library, create beautiful play structures, install a rain water catchment system, upgrade the toilets, prepare a garden, and provide school supplies and uniforms for the students.
The expanded nursery school was embraced by the community and parents began paying small student fees to support the second teacher as well as the minimal costs required to maintain the school. Marceline continues to devote her time and her energies to the school in hopes of giving all the children in her community a head start on their education!
2015 - Breakfast Program begins
As the nursery school continued, Marceline was able to introduce a breakfast program for the students. Every morning, she gets up and prepares a hearty cup of porridge for all the students made from a mix of sorghum, spices and sugar. Not only is Marceline providing the students with an invaluable start to their education, they are also receiving a nutritious breakfast to give them the energy to make it through their day
2023 - 15 years and going strong
After 15 years, the St. Laurent Nursey school continues to go strong. Marceline continues to dedicated herself to providing her students with a enriching education experience that sets them up for success their whole life though.
