In Chumvi, a rural village in Laikipia County, Kenya, children have to travel upwards of 2 hours to get to the nearest school. It is a dangerous journey, as kids have to navigate elephant, lion, leopard, and hyena. So parents got together and formed a school under a tree for pre-primary learners. American Friends of Kenya helped develop a small shed to protect them from wind and rain.

But dangers persist. Elizabeth, the volunteer parent-teacher, showed me where elephants came through a month before my first visit (and kids had to vacate the structure quickly and quietly), and where, a week before, a leopard attacked goats in her family compound only 100 meters away.

They need a safe, dry, and warm place to learn.

Through partnerships with Inspire Library and The Traveling Librarians, Reading the World and Maasai community volunteers built a school. What started as a project to remodel a shipping container was already too small when we broke ground: more kids enrolled. So we cut the back wall off the container, built additional walls, poured a concrete floor and apron, put on a roof, and installed windows and doors double the size of the original container.

Now the children have a safe, dry, and warm place to learn. The education ministry took notice: they assigned a certified teacher. And the area chief also promised to bring water to the school.

Much more remains to be done: finishing the building with solar electricity, insulation and painting, furniture and shelving, books, and training and instructional supplies for the teachers. (We are already sponsoring Elizabeth to earn Kenya certification as an Early Learning Education specialist at a nearby college).