WHEN Mercy College teacher Elise Harrison takes her Year 10 students through the ‘human wellbeing’ component of Humanities and Social Sciences next term, she’ll have plenty of examples to draw on.
The Hillarys resident is travelling to Kenya with Nakuru Hope founder Susan Saleeba next weekend to spend two weeks with students and families from the Kaptembwa slums.
Mrs Harrison will be helping teachers in classrooms, visiting families in the slums, helping prepare more than 200 meals a day and caring for children in the not-for-profit’s orphanage.
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READ NOWShe said part of next term’s curriculum focused on Africa and their access to shelter.
“So much of their population is slum,” she said.
Mercy College principal Julie Hornby said that when teachers like Mrs Harrison helped build communities and provide a better quality of life for people overseas, it added depth to conversations they had with students.
“The reality is there’s so much poverty and to have a teacher help improve the standard of living overseas speaks volumes,” Ms Hornby said.
“It’s very important that leaders at schools support their staff going to outreach programs.”
The school community has donated goods and money so Mrs Harrison can help make a different in Kenya.
