Othaya Girls Principal Jane Waceke Scoops 2019 POYA Award

Othaya Girls Principal, Jane Waceke, has scooped the 2019 Principal of the Year Award (POYA).

Waceke emerged the winner during the Kenya Secondary School Heads conference in Mombasa that ended on Friday with her win getting attributed to her administration’s ability to merge innovation and use ICT in teaching.

Waceke has been hailed as a great example to school heads that were challenged to also incorporate ICT in their service delivery to students.

“I stood out due to innovation, where we have been able to integrate ICT in teaching and learning and we are able to even teach other schools from a remote centre in Othaya Girls,” Waceke says.

Waceke, who is 48 years of age and has 12 years to retirement, is set to greatly impact secondary schools with her introduction of Double Digit Focus, a programme designed to sync timetables to enable sharing of ideas.

“Buruburu Girls, Kanjuri Boys, South Tetu Girls, Othaya Boys, Tumu Tumu Girls Secondary Schools are in our league, which we call the Double Digit Focus. We have a common timetable,” Waceke revealed.

“We are aspiring to go to 10 plus in our mean score. We are using zoom technology, which is like video conferencing, where the learners are able to interact and learn from each other,” she noted.

The Othaya Girls Principal was welcomed back to her home in Karatina amid jubilation by her family, colleagues and friends who created an entourage that saw her tour the town while showcasing the award.

The entourage then proceeded for a thanksgiving mass at Othaya Girls’.

The Othaya Girls’ Principal has also introduced an e-learning section in the school.

“It’s a virtual class where students can see each other from their screens, they ask and answer questions,” Waceke noted, adding that the students can also use the laboratories and libraries to get assistance from peers and teachers.

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Waceke has attributed the school’s success to the team work enabled by members of her staff saying they also have a team-teaching system.

“We have departmental weeks where we do a lot of work on a particular subject. Our students also carry a pocket solution, which is a problem that they identify in the morning and must find a solution to by evening,” the Principal says.

Waceke was quick to note that the money she had won would go into paying school fees for needy students in her school.

“I have asked teachers to identify needy students in each class. I will use every shilling to ensure they are taken care of,” she said.

“Due to the transition, our school’s enrolment has increased drastically from 699 in 2016 to 1,080. This has strained our facilities. We appeal to well-wishers to help us complete the stalled dormitory,” the POYA award winner requested.

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