Professor Njoroge at WPI

Out of more than 350,000 students who sit for Kenya Certificate of Education about 34,000 students approximately 10% get a chance to get university education in the Kenya University System today. The high school graduate number is also projected to grow to 500,000 students. In an effort to see more opportunities Professor Njoroge working with other kenyan professors, professors at WPI university, Kenyan professionals in Kenya and abroad is determined to see a new university built in Kenya

Professor Njoroge is not new to big projects and ideas. As the first African headmaster of the prestigious Mangu High School, he welcomed the idea to relocate Mangu High School from the location it was to its current location. He remembers and says, “then I travelled to Germany and negotiated until we acquired the funding needed.” Professor Njoroge would move on to University of Nairobi and thereafter with others join to found Kenyatta University where he became the first Dean of the Department of Education and later Director of the Bureau of Educational Research. Kenyatta University today with its constituent colleges will enroll about 6,000 students to join university this year a testament that people should not be afraid to start projects.

 In an effort to grow universities while at the same time ensure high quality education and students are not exploited through non-accredited universities, Professor Njoroge joined others to found The Commission of Higher Education in 1985. He says he welcomed the written support of the current Secretary and CEO of the Commission Professor Standa “encouraging the development of the institution.”  

Professor Njoroge notes that he left the country based on disagreements with the then dictatorial government that led to his arrest and detention. Unwilling to tolerate this shallow thinking that was not developing the country, he would settle in the U.S where he continued with his passion in teaching and has taught many universities including Harvard, WPI University and others in the Worcester consortium of colleges. He also did not forget Kenya and would write three books, two books with his new friend Professor Arthur Gerstefeld of WPI University.  

Having taught in many universities for the last 35 years, Professor Njoroge says the WPI model is one of the best models in the world today that is impacting students with that invention and innovative thinking. He is also proud of the model for it is a Global model that attracts students from 70 countries worldwide. 

On the Kenya University Project, he projects that the new university will grow to offer about 5,000 students opportunity in the fields of Civil, Mechanical, Environmental sciences and Electrical & Computer and other disciplines based on the WPI approach.   

He is joined by WPI Professors and other Kenyan Professionals abroad and in Kenya to initiate procedures that will integrate the learning and development systems.   

On location he says the choice is to locate the university in the Coast region in either Kwale, Kilifi, Malindi or Tana River County. He notes that it is unfortunate that Kenya lacks well set systems that can move the country forward and get investments. Saying, “We have identified many large farms and offered the best offers we can.” Professor Njoroge remembers he did not have to negotiate this much even with the Germans in the 70’s. He sees the lack of progress more based on poor advice and lack of the spirit of taking even the smallest risk.  

However he is optimistic about the future of Kenya and believes the young people given educational tools can grow Kenya from being one of the poorest nations in the world with a per capita income of $1,700 to becoming part of the richest and even get to a per capita of $47,000 like the U.S. through continued growth of 15% and above for the next 50 years. He notes this is a long journey forward that has to be started.  

On the future president he says, “The country should look for a new direction based on new innovative ideas. Once ideas are tabled to the electorate then the country will have good leaders especially in the county level where much of the development will occur in accordance with the new Constitution of Kenya.”    

To read more on Kenya University Project visit www.Kenyauniversity.org