African Sisters Education Collaborative
Collaboration is central to ASEC’s mission, exemplified by partnerships with educational institutions and national conferences of religious across ten African countries, all aimed at empowering Catholic sisters through education, as highlighted in the 2023 HESA Partners Conference.
The Higher Education for Sisters in Africa (HESA) program empowers Catholic sisters in Africa by providing access to post-secondary education, resulting in over 1,144 graduates across 24 partner institutions in 10 African countries and the U.S.
On September 27, 2023 ASEC participant Sr. Josephine Muthoni Kwenga, SJT won a People’s Choice Award for her Sustainable Agriculture Project in Kenya.
The 2023 HESA Partners Conference took place in Nairobi, Kenya from June 13-17th.
We measure the impact of education through qualitative data by interviewing ASEC sisters, both those current students and alumnae. Through learning their stories, we can connect the dots between education and transformation, both within the sisters and their communities.
DMI-St. Eugene University in Zambia is the first partner university in Africa to have been founded by religious women.
Women religious go where the need is greatest and do everything they can to fulfill it, including increasing the availability of opportunities for agricultural growth in Tanzania.
After being with ASEC for a year, I’ve had the opportunity to learn so much about Catholic sisters, African culture, and some of the unique and beautiful traditions of Catholicism in Africa. One thing that I’ve noticed is the power of incorporating dance into graduations, mass and religious celebrations in Africa. I wanted to know more.
Sr. Maria N. Isaya, a religious woman of the Institute of the Little Sisters of St. Francis in Tanzania, started her journey with ASEC in 2016 through the Higher Education for Sisters in Africa (HESA). Since then she has brought transformation to her community by using her skills to provide education to those in poverty, improving their overall quality of life.
HESA and Scholarship Senior Program Manager Rosemary Shaver, Ed.D. received her Doctorate in Education from Wilkes University after successful defense of her research on the perceived impact of service learning programs on higher education learners. Through her research she was able to find that it is a transformative experience that promotes self-examination, dialogue, and skill development among participants.
Sr. Grace became the first woman religious elected as Faculty Student President at CUCG in 2021 and since then she has been using her ASEC education to better her congregation.
Taking care of kids takes a village – something ASEC Sisters understand well. It is not just tucking them in at night and making sure they are accounted for during the day, it is also making sure their future is taken care of as well.
