Pioneer Students Celebrate Milestone in Abuja
The first cohort of students from KNOSK N100-a-Day Charity Secondary School, Kuje, Abuja, has officially graduated, marking the milestone with a two-day Education Impact Story Exhibition co-hosted by the Embassy of Ireland and the United States Diplomatic Mission in Nigeria.
The event, held in the nation’s capital, celebrated the achievements of the pioneer graduates and the school’s efforts to make quality education accessible to underserved children. Guests participated in exhibitions, storytelling, panel discussions, spoken word, musical performances and personal testimonies showcasing the tangible results of the initiative’s mission.
14 Unique Stories of Difficulty and Resilience
Speaking with newsmen at the graduation and exhibition, co-founder Irene Bangwell said the event was also organised to raise funds in support of the 14 pioneer students as they begin their journey into tertiary education.
According to her, while some students had already secured scholarships at MIVA University, the African University of Science and Technology and Philomath University, each child had overcome significant challenges.
“They’ve gone through different adversities—loss of parents, living with foster families, being displaced—and then the school took them in to provide accommodation. All 14 of them have 14 unique stories of difficulty and resilience, ensuring their academics never suffered despite their struggles. I’d like to think that these children, when given support, responded by fulfilling their part of the bargain—staying disciplined, studying hard, working hard, and showing good conduct. They are very deserving of whatever support is extended to them today,” she said.
One of the graduates, Solver Marjorie Pada, disclosed that he cleared all his WAEC and NECO exams and scored 241 in this year’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). Pada, who plans to study Software Engineering at the Federal University of Technology, Minna, said he had yet to get a sponsor as of the time of filing this report.
He encouraged children from underprivileged backgrounds to keep pursuing their dreams. He describes his journey at KNOSK as life-changing and noting that the consistent education and support from teachers and peers had given him the confidence to pursue his dream of becoming a tech innovator.
Model for Replication Nationwide
Founded in 2019, KNOSK School charges a daily fee of ₦100 (about five cents) and provides free books, uniforms, sportswear, daily lunch and monthly sanitary pads for girls. It is designed for children from low-income families earning below the minimum wage of ₦70,000 ($46.90). Donors help sponsor each child at costs ranging from ₦80,000 per term to ₦240,000 per session.
Bangwell said the school’s aim is to broaden its reach and give more underprivileged students and underserved communities access to education.
“I want to see KNOSK School in many more localities, many more states, because we have a model that works … We’ve done this for six years, and we’re just starting our seventh school year, so I feel like we have a framework that we can put anywhere and get the right outcomes. People just need to look out for the next announcement,” she said.
She added that the event serves as a powerful reminder of what can be achieved when communities rally behind education, stressing that donors’ support has made life-changing opportunities possible for the students. She also paid tribute to organisations and individuals — including Ford Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, Reliance HMO, International Community School, Pillars of Love School and others — who have kept the pioneer students in school over the past six years.
Co-founder Kingsley Bangwell revealed that the school currently serves 180 students but has had to turn away more than 500 applicants due to space limitations. He called for greater government intervention and urged policymakers to design targeted programmes for underserved communities, which face multiple barriers such as poor nutrition and insecurity that threaten learning outcomes.
Diplomats Laud Model, Urge Stakeholders to Adopt It
In goodwill messages, the Ambassador of Denmark to Nigeria, Jens Ole Bach Hansen; Second Secretary and Head of Cooperation, Embassy of Ireland in Nigeria, Benita Hickson; and Director-General, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lanre Issa-Onilu, commended the resilience of the students and the innovative funding model that made their education possible. They encouraged the graduates to see themselves as ambassadors of hope and urged stakeholders to replicate the KNOSK approach in other parts of the country to bridge educational gaps.
Other graduates also expressed gratitude to the school and its donors for providing not just an education, but also a sense of stability and belonging — reinforcing the exhibition’s message that with the right support, children from even the most challenging backgrounds can rise above adversity and excel academically and personally.