The KCB Foundation has donated 50 laptops to university students under its scholarship programme. The laptops are part of the enhancement to the programme launched last year that saw the Foundation revamp its scholarship programme to incorporate University scholarships in its portfolio.
This is in addition to the existing high school scholarship programme that will see it spend over KShs. 2.8 Billion over the next ten years in the Education pillar.
Every year, the top 50 performers from the high school programme will now receive university scholarships catering for the tuition fee in any public university in Kenya, in what kicked off with the 2020 KCSE class.
The University Scholarship Programme will facilitate a smooth transition for the top performers who attain a mean grade of A and A- and the best 2 students living with disabilities each year, from the KCB Foundation High School programme.
“The laptops are part of a deliberate effort by the Foundation to enable the scholars to effectively undertake their schoolwork as well as access their virtual class lessons” said Rosalind Gichuru, KCB Group Director Marketing, Corporate Affairs and Citizenship.
“We want our Scholars to have an equitable opportunity by continuing to access their class courses and complete their assignments on time. With many of them coming from marginalized communities, access to a laptop for purposes of following the classroom lessons or undertaking assignments was going to be a big challenge,” she added.
This follows the KCB Foundation annual apprenticeship programme that was introduced in May, where the top 50 from their 2020 high school scholarship cohort got a three-month apprenticeship at their local KCB Bank branch.
The scholarship programme started 14 years ago with the aim of supporting efforts to increase the transition rate from primary to secondary school. The KCB Foundation supports 240 students from across Kenya annually, 40 of them Persons with Disability, by providing a full four-year scholarship in public schools catering for school fees, stationery, and uniforms. Additionally, each of the students is assigned a mentor from their local KCB Bank home branch for quarterly one-on-one mentorship sessions.
