My name is Raymond and I embarked on my transformational journey when I joined the Ngong Road Children’s Foundation (NRCF) in 2014. Back then, I was a student in grade 4 and I was really happy to become a part of NRCF and start my empowering journey in education. I joined Jagiet Academy where I completed my primary education in 2018. After primary school, I transitioned to Makwa Boys High School in Thika. This is where my passion for Computer Science began.
This newfound passion made me reconsider my childhood dream of becoming a doctor. Upon completion of my high school studies in 2022, I was eager to pursue a career in Software Engineering. In January 2023, I started my computer package training offered by Belmont College through the program. In April, NRCF got into a partnership with DirectEd Development Foundation where we, the high school graduates, would be trained in coding and developer skills. I was excited about this partnership as I knew that it was exactly what I wanted to pursue.
Through my time learning from DirectEd tutors, I underwent a series of modules, each contributing to my growth. However, it was the final module that truly put my skills to the test. The task was to create an individual app project that could be used to solve real-world problems. My project was termed the “Terminal” and it was a messaging app aimed to provide a platform for seamless communication. Despite the extensive knowledge I had gained, I still needed to bridge some gaps. In order to bridge these gaps, I embarked on another course to learn about socket.io, a technology that facilitates real-time and bidirectional communication between web clients.
Armed with this newfound knowledge, I returned to my project to enhance it. The results were impressive as the “Terminal” stood out as one of the best projects in the class, receiving a score of 60 out of 75. After all the learning, I finally secured merit in Full-Stack Development. During the graduation ceremony held on the 16th of August for the 1st cohort of graduates from the DirectEd coding program, I was honored to have received my certificate.
I am grateful for the support from NRCF and for the learning at DirectEd that has propelled me towards my goal. Looking ahead, I am excited to continue building my skills, exploring new avenues in software development, and contributing to the ever-evolving world of technology.