UPWARD JUNIOR SCHOOL - BWEYALE, UGANDA
UPWARD JUNIOR SCHOOL
The vision for this school began in 2009, initiated by Sunday Sula the AAI director in Uganda.
The first step was to purchase suitable land. This was found in Bweyale, a rural town, 4 hours north from the capital city, Kampala. The second step was to establish a successful Primary School, which would then extend to provide for children with special needs.
In 2013 the school opened its door for services and a total of 34 pupils registered for classes from primary one – primary five. By 2022 the enrolment had risen to approximately 52 staff and 800 children, many of them coming from the nearby Kiryandongo Refugee settlement.
In 2020 due to the unavailability of Teachers for the Deaf, a program was developed to achieve the original vision, by sponsoring hearing-impaired children to attend a Specialist School. These 10 children will be supported by Upward Primary through to any level of education.
These two hearing impaired boys sponsored by Upward School, completed Primary School in 2020
ACHIEVEMENTS AT UPWARD JUNIOR SCHOOL
Since opening its doors for children of Uganda, and refugees from neighboring countries, Upward School has achieved much:
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Registration by relevant government bodies in Education
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Financially self-sustaining
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Among the top five schools in the district
The school grows beans, maize, vegetables, peanuts and fruit on the property used to provide meals for both the pupils & staff.
A large Assembly Hall was completed in 2019-2020. This serves as an Examination Centre for the Upward school and is available for use by other schools in the district, generating funds towards self-sufficiency for the future
BOARDING FACILITIES
are provided for senior boys and for girls, each with a Matron providing loving care.
Girl's dormitory circa 2019
Upward Primary School provides meals for the children, which are funded through fees under normal circumstances.
However, the economy post Covid has increased the costs of food significantly so that the fees no longer cover the expenditure. As families cannot afford fee increases at this time, the school is faced with the decision to consider closing the school if external funds are not sourced.
This constant budgeting challenge represents urgent needs to develop readily available land for food production. Finance for some subsistent agricultural machinery, seeds and watering and irrigation systems are therefore a priority as the school continues to grow.