Jacinta Akatsa
Principal, Precious Blood Secondary School Riruta
Bold Idea: Build a culture of innovation in the teaching staff at one of Kenya’s top public secondary schools, making it a model for how to engage parents, teachers, and students in the creation of a non-competitive, holistic, and high-quality public education.
Path to Metis: From her 30 years as a teacher, Deputy Principal, and Principal at Precious Blood, Jacinta has deep knowledge of what it takes to lead higher quality in a Kenyan public school. She was exposed to innovative education models from a young age when she attended UWC Atlantic College in Wales and experienced the IB curriculum. Precious Blood was founded in 1964 by Catholic nuns to serve children of families affected by the Mau Mau struggle.
Jacinta was promoted to Principal in 2005 and under her leadership, the school has been consistently ranked as one of the top five public secondary schools in the country. In 2016, Precious Blood students designed a bus booking app, earning them an opportunity to pitch at the Technovation World Pitch Competition in San Francisco, where they placed second. Jacinta has grown a strong alumni fundraising network and built a new lab and resource centre in partnership with the Ministry of Education.
She also teaches Biology and Chemistry. Jacinta aims to build on the school’s reputation as a highly respected and prestigious school for girls, to innovate and demonstrate what high-quality education can look like beyond the traditional exam-focused education model. Outside of Precious Blood, Jacinta obtained an MBA from JKUAT and in 2010, co-founded a low-fee primary school where she is now a co-director.
More About Jacinta:
K24 TV Profile of Precious Blood
Documentary about Precious Blood produced by Take 2 Afrika Media
