Inkululeko means “Freedom” in isiXhosa.
Our organization, founded in 2011, engages proactively in supporting the next generation of South African leaders with finishing high school and applying to higher education or being equipped with a skill set to enter a 21st century workforce.
We carry out this mission through after school programs (“ASPs”) that offer academic support as well as business skills training for school age learners from severely resource limited environments. We enrol approximately 70 teenage students per year in grade eight and, ideally, remain with these learners through grade 12.
We work strategically, and in concert with, township schools in Makhanda, South Africa as well as with community organizations and universities in Makhanda and around the world. You can read more about these collaborations here.
The organization has academic (classroom) space at both Nathaniel Nyaluza Senior Secondary School and at its primary branch, Ntsika Senior Secondary School. We provide learners with access to resources including books for leisure reading, textbooks, desktops, laptops and tablets as well as access to the internet. Learners are also provided with individual support, as needed, with, for example, bursary applications.
Through our new business skills programming, learners gain insight into basic business principles, operating a small business, developing business plans and in some cases, piloting their ideas. The purpose behind this is to build confidence among our learners, and hopefully inspire some to become entrepreneurs. We hope, in the long-term, to support the development of an entrepreneurial spirit within the community that we work.
Through our academic programs, learners have an opportunity to work with tutors from both South Africa and the United States through GoogleMeet and WhatsApp. There are also opportunities to work one-on-one with tutors who can provide tailored guidance and insight into challenging academic assignments. The organization has also built an online library of YouTube videos custom made for learners and in alignment with the CAPS curriculum.
Inkululeko has close working relationship with Rhodes University, in Makhanda, and is a three times finalist in the strongly contested Community Partner of the Year category of the Rhodes University Community Engagement Awards.
We welcome assistance of any kind –not just financial support – and we would love to hear from you.
Testimonial letters are available upon request.
Our Vision
Inkululeko is a space for youth from previously disadvantaged backgrounds to individually, and collectively, improve on areas of academic deficiency. It is a place where motivated students, regardless of socio-economic status, race, gender, religious affiliation, sexual orientation or nationality, will be provided with academic and moral support to perform at the highest level.
Inkululeko is a place where socio-economic disparities and bigotry will not be used as excuses for why students cannot succeed. Students, staff and the community will prove to themselves, and each other, that with support, motivation and a desire to learn, success is possible.
Values and Guiding Principles
Inkululeko recognizes that every person has the right to pursue a high-quality education that prepares them for university, or to enter a career field of their choice.
Inkululeko recognizes that socio-economic disparities are entrenched as a result of the aftermath of apartheid. These socio-economic disparities can be combated with education and the opportunity it brings by allowing youth—born in a new, democratic South Africa—to pursue their dreams of higher education and provide for themselves and their families.
Inkululeko believes that impoverished people are impoverished—not inherently unable to succeed. Providing opportunities, support and praise for people to pursue their education can have a monumental impact on how people view themselves, and in turn, how they view what is possible in their own lives.
