Celebrations as Village Sends First Student to Alliance After 96 Years

A file image of the entrance to Alliance High School
A file image of the entrance to Alliance High School
Alliance High School

A village in Laikipia County is elated after it sent its first-ever Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) candidate to the Alliance High School in the institution's 96-year history. 

Evans Maina, made Nturukuma Village proud after he secured a slot at his dream school in the recently concluded 2021 Form One selection exercise.

Speaking to the media, Maina expressed his excitement, noting that the national school was his first choice and his dream school.  He promised to take full advantage of the rare opportunity.

Top KCPE Student Evans Maina addresses the media in Nturukuma village in Laikipia County on April 13, 2022..jpg (
Top KCPE Student Evans Maina addresses the media in Nturukuma village in Laikipia County on April 13, 2022.
Kenyans.co.ke

"I have always regarded Alliance High School as one of the best and I desired to join. I thank God for the selection process that gifted me the opportunity to join the school and I promise not to let you down," he stated.

Notably, being the first student to join the top-performing school was not the only record that Evans broke. Maina was the first student from Nturukuma to score more than 400 marks in the national examination.

The newly christened village hero is an inspiration to many, given the challenges he faced to get an education. Coming from a humble backyard, getting access to learning resources proved to be difficult.

"I did not have the resources I needed and was forced to borrow books from some of my friends. Even at home, I did not quite have the perfect studying environment, but I am glad I made it," he stated.

His mother admitted to the struggles, noting that it was quite a challenge to put him through primary school. This coupled with the insecurity in most parts of Laikipia county also created hurdles that he managed to overcome.

Maina, who hopes to become a pilot in future, will be in the company of top student, Magata Bruce Makenzie who was also called to the prestigious national school.

Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha noted that 38,797 candidates were placed in national schools, 214,960 in the extra county schools, 258,456 in county schools, 726,311 in Sub-county schools and 2,045 in special needs schools.

Magoha announced that the government will be offering 9,000 scholarships to needy students. However, he added that 4,000 of the same will be preferred to students from urban informal settlements.

Nanyuki High School, for the second year running, emerged as the most preferred secondary school by candidates having attracted a total of 156,003 applications from the interested pupils.

Education CS George Magoha with KCPE Candidates at the Moi Nyeri Complex Primary School on Tuesday, March 8, 2022.
Education CS George Magoha with KCPE Candidates at the Moi Nyeri Complex Primary School on Tuesday, March 8, 2022.
Photo
Ministry of Education