Blog
Introducing ALA’s Global Summer Short Courses
We are delighted to announce a brand new set of short courses designed for young global leaders from all around the world – African Leadership Academy’s Global Short Courses. These courses have been created to enable knowledge exchange between Africa’s future leaders studying at ALA, and students in different parts of the world. Building on ALA’s rigorous and practical leadership development, entrepreneurship and design-thinking courses, and an inspiring and informative African Studies curriculum, the courses provide a unique global learning opportunity for students in Grades 7 – 11.
Two ALA Students win STEM Competition at Annual Derby Day Event
Each year, students from a group of schools across Southern Africa come together for Derby Day, an activity-filled day comprising a range of sports and academic challenges. This year’s event was hosted at Maru-a-Pula School in Botswana, where, early this month, two ALA students walked away with both first and second prizes in the STEM competition. Fifteen different students took part in the competition, representing four schools from two countries. Out of those fifteen, Kenyan Michael Jembe Bongo ’18 came in 1st place with his “Co-Production of Energy from Wind and Solar” presentation, and Moroccan, Skylar Grace Montague Redecke ’18, won 2nd place with her presentation titled “Antibacterial Effects of Garlic”.
Tanzanian Entrepreneur, Erick Laizer ’19 Develops Phone-Operated Smoke Detector and Security System
After noticing a big problem with fires, electric shocks, and house break-ins in his community in Arusha, Tanzania, first-year student Erick Simon Laizer ’19 decided to do something about it. Following a joint effort with his former classmate in 2015, the two problem solvers designed a unique smoke detector that connects to mobile networks to send automatic alerts to emergency response units within five seconds. For Erick, ALA has provided him with the opportunity to think even more deeply about his business and how he can strengthen it. “ALA was my number one choice because I have always loved how the school brings students from different countries together and having them focus on their entrepreneurial skills.
Four ALA Students Develop Mobile App to Integrate Sign Language to Text at E-Fest 2020
Every year, the African Leadership Academy Entrepreneurial Leadership department hosts an Entrepreneurial Festival, also known as E-Fest, which showcases unique solutions to grand challenges designed by first year students through the Original Ideas for Development (OID) units of the curriculum. The winning enterprise was ViC, a group of four students from Kenya, Tunisia, Madagascar and Burundi, who created an application that integrates sign language to text in order to bridge the gap between the hearing-impaired and hearing communities in Africa.
The Living Machine: Transforming the Teaching of Science at ALA
The Living Machine, a sustainable wastewater treatment system designed and implemented by African Leadership Academy alumni Wuntia Gomda ’17 of Ghana and Jesse Forrester ’17 of Kenya in 2019, has become a central component of teaching and learning in the Biology classroom at ALA. Head of Science and Technology Department, Hans Sowder, who has been leading The Living Machine installation, has incorporated this machine into his curriculum.
Mareme Dieng ’13 Combines College with Leadership Role in Silicon Valley
Mareme Dieng ’13 from Senegal, is combining a rigorous schedule as a college Senior with a prestigious role as Head of International Partnerships and Relations at Draper University. As her…
Award-Winning Entrepreneur Amy Wanday ’15, Shaping the Future of Sports in Africa
“My mission in life is to ensure that no other African child with a love for sport feels like they cannot pursue it in the industry. I also aim to…
Beyond Education Series Ignites Education Conversations in Six Cities
Through the Beyond Education conferences series, senior executives from African Leadership Academy, education leaders from around the world, and a cohort of young African changemakers under 30 explore the future of education, leadership, and development in Africa. The theme for 2019 is “Developing Changemakers: How to Prepare the Next Generation for Careers of Impact.”
My Experience Leading ALA Recruitment in Francophone Africa…And Working Remotely
Although I work remotely, I constantly meet people and for me, the greatest rewards is to see the vision of ALA unfold in the lives of young Africans.
Three ALA Students Facilitate Workshops at the Global Leadership Summit
In July, four members of the ALA community facilitated leadership workshops at the Global Leadership Summit in Davos, Switzerland, continuing a productive four year relationship with the Education First Educational…
ALA Hosts Education and Health Sector Gatherings in Kenya and Rwanda
In June and July, members of the ALA network convened in Kenya and Rwanda, connecting people and ideas around two of Africa’s greatest opportunities: imagining the future of education and…
2019 Global Scholars Program Welcomes Young Leaders from 20 Countries
Now in its ninth season of delivering a transformative experiential learning experience in self-awareness, service learning and social impact to scholars across the globe, the ALA Global Scholars Program is much more than just a holiday program. This year, we welcome more than 150 young leaders from 20 countries to participate in five distinct GSP sessions between June 24th and August 15th.
ALA Invests in Early Career Transitions at 2019 Professional Development Barazas
During the month of July, Africa Careers Network hosted two successful professional development conferences, called “Barazas”, in South Africa and Uganda, welcoming participants from 18 countries in the ALA alumni network and the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program network.
ALA Hosts 2019 Obama Foundation Leaders: Africa Program
After a successful inaugural session in 2018, the Obama Foundation Leaders: Africa program returned to the ALA campus in Johannesburg, welcoming 200 emerging leaders from 45 countries across the continent, including ALA’s Marvin Tarawally (’11) from Liberia.
Imagining the Future of the ALA Curriculum
Our ALA 2023 Strategic Plan challenges us to step more fully into our leadership role in education as a “Learning, Innovating, Leading School.” With this in mind, we have spent…
Ngor Majak Anyieth ’11: Developing a Leadership & Peace-Building Academy in South Sudan
Ngor Majak Anyieth (’11), returns to ALA to learn once again, but this time under the Anzisha Education Accelerator, a network of education entrepreneurs which he joined in 2018 as…
Outstanding Student Research Presented at 2019 Graduation Leadership Symposium
Six exceptional research projects were presented at the 2019 Graduation Leadership Symposium on June 20th, as part of ALA’s 10th graduation ceremonies. The Leadership Symposium affords members of each graduating…
Five ALA Students Selected as 2019 Bezos Scholars
Five ALA students have been selected to join the prestigious Bezos Scholars Program, joining a cohort of exceptional students selected from across the United States for the year-long leadership program….
Class of 2017 Reflects on Exceptional Growth through ALA Theses
In the run-up to our 10th graduation ceremonies, each member of our graduating class presented their thesis to the community. In what has become an annual tradition, the ALA Thesis…
Leading HIV Researcher and Holocaust Survivor Visit ALA
In June, we welcomed two world-leading experts to the ALA campus – HIV/AIDS researcher, Dr Bruce Walker and holocaust survivor and French resistance activist, Mr Eric Mayer. Dr Walker, who…