By all standards, St Kevin Group of Schools Director Kevin Nyongesa is a big man. Not only does he have a towering physique, he has also gone on to create an impressive academic empire.
Yet despite his imposing size, Nyongesa - who is fondly referred to by pupils, teachers and parents alike as “Teacher Big”, is a humble, soft spoken and self effacing individual.
Speaking to him, one would not know that he is the brains behind St Kelvin Hill School in Nyali which emerged top in Mombasa County during last year’s KCPE exams. With 24 candidates, the school had a mean score of 427.5 and Nyongesa attributes this sterling performance to cooperation from all members of the school community.
“We have exemplary handling of our students who we view as our own children. Teachers conduct themselves in a very professional manner, are friendly and inculcate a culture of hard work,” he says.
While many only see the successful man that Nyongesa now is, under this veneer is a resilient man who refused to give up in the face of overwhelming odds.
“It was only through determination that I managed to acquire an education. I attended a village primary school and would daily walk some four kilometers bare foot. Despite these challenges, I emerged as the second best student in my zonal district of Busia county,” he says.
Farming being the family’s only main-stay Nyongesa would, every evening after school, join other family members in the farm. He later went on to join Mundika High School
“High school was a defining moment in my life since it was then I got to put on shoes and saw electricity for the very first time. After completion, I received admission letters from both Bukura Agricultural College and Kaimosi Teachers Training College. I could not afford the school fees at Kaimosi, so I joined Bukura where the Government took care of my fees,” he says.
In the early 1990’s, having completed his college studies, Nyongesa followed a friend to the coastal city where tough times caused him to turn to his one true passion - teaching.
“Teaching is something that flows in my blood and to survive, I opted to start offering tuition to the neighbouring children. My passion and seeing my pupils improve made more parents trust me with their children. In a few months I had a class of over 50 learners coming into my one-roomed humble abode,” he says.
It was from this experience that the idea to start a school took root and in 1997, Nyongesa set up the group of schools.
“While I am the director, it is our teachers and parents who have supported us all the way. The pupils must also be lauded for maintaining the school’s culture of excellence typified by an unquenchable thirst for success,” he says.
The school first hit headlines in early 2005 after it posted magnificent results in KCPE, then in 2007 when it produced the best performing overall candidate and in 2014 when it was ranked the best private school.
Nyongesa admits that maintaining a sterling performance has not been easy.
“Our focus has been to develop and mould young brains who will in future become responsible citizens. As a school, all parties - teachers, parents and the learners have had to pay the price of responsibility, consistency and discipline,” he says.
The group of schools now has over 100 learning institutions spread out in Mombasa, Kilifi, Taita Taveta and Busia counties. Nyongesa says he took this decision in order to “bring schools closer to parents.
“I wanted to avoid the hassle of transporting children to far flung areas. That is why you see St Kevin almost everywhere,” he says.
Teacher Big could not hide his distaste for the drilling method of teaching which he frowns at saying it focuses on passing examinations as opposed to offering an in-depth understanding of concepts.
“You cannot drill a child for eight years so they sit for an exam that only lasts three days. We offer open learning and my teaching staff follow the syllabus to the letter. We also have an established culture of time management and abhor time wastage,” he says.
Despite having started out as an untrained teacher, Nyongesa is currently finishing his Masters in Education at Mt Kenya University.
The group of schools has approximately 6,000 pupils, with more than 30 students being beneficiaries of a sponsorship programme that the director launched a few years ago and who are currently pursuing their O-Level in various national schools.
