Nelson Mandela said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” This is the mentality that personifies Operation iDream founders, Samuel and Kasamba Sikapizye. The school project was designed out of necessity, when Samuel Sikapizye noticed that children were farming instead of attending school during the day. When asked, the villagers notified him that schools have always been inaccessible to their children, with the nearest schools located 10-20 miles away.

From its humble beginnings, iDream Community School has provided transformative opportunities through education, empowerment, and community support. One hundred students first attended iDream School in very primitive conditions. Seated in the dirt under a thatched lean-to with no classroom walls, no desks, and limited curriculum supplies, two teachers instilled these students with a passion for learning that fueled an educational movement.

Today, iDream Community School is a rapidly-growing, vibrant academic community with over 400 students attending K-12th grade. Students now have access to a beautiful library facility, where they can peruse books and reference materials at their leisure; a computer lab, to become proficient in digital skills essential in this modern world; and bikes they may use during the school year if they are traveling a great distance to attend class. A new science laboratory has also been completed and is currently awaiting materials to enhance high school education in biology, chemistry, and physics.

 

The school has blossomed. We now have multiple blocks of classrooms built and over 300 children enrolled. There is still work to do. Many of the new classrooms do not have desks yet.