about En Classe EN
Sylvia lived in Kinshasa for 4 years and is one of the founders. After she moved from Kinshasa to New York in 2009, she chose to keep helping the Congolese children she always found so special and cheerful. In 2012, she founded En Classe USA to optimize the fundraising. Sylvia is the President of the En Classe Foundation in the Netherlands as well as in the US. At least twice a year, she visits Kinshasa and she gets in touch with the team in Kinshasa, through Skype, What's App and email on a daily basis. A more than full time job, but the best there is!
Before moving to Kinshasa at the end of 2013, Kerstin lived in sub-Saharan Africa for more than four years. Ever since then she was involved in school projects. When she started her new life in Kinshasa she was excited to get the opportunity to support En Classe. Kerstin is originally from Germany, has a background in International Business and Cultural Studies and a wide range of experience working internationally in different industries. Being confronted every day with a vast number of people struggling in every-day life, she is convinced that improving basic education is of critical importance and gives children a chance of a better future.
Michiel moved to Kinshasa in October 2014 because of the work of his partner. Since his arrival he had the intention to work for an NGO and so he came across `En Classe`. Previously, Michiel worked in the oil and gas industry in various places in the world. In Indonesia, he has already educated children, aged 9 to 14, in computer literacy. He firmly believes that improving education and the school environment are amongst the basic requirements for a better life.
Together with her husband and two small children, Annejet moved to Kinshasa in April 2014. She heard about the work of EnClasse through friends at Bralima and was very impressed with the numerous projects realized by a small group of very devoted people. Before moving to Kinshasa, Annejet worked as a Brussels-based consultant specialized in corporate responsibility and sustainable development. Annejet speaks both French and Dutch. She is very excited to be part of En Classe and to work with the Congolese children and teachers on improving their school environment.
Natascha is also one of the founders of En Classe. Before she left for Kinshasa in 2006, she was a lawyer in Amsterdam. After her departure from Congo, she remained active for En Classe. She is a great supporter of the En Classe goals and its approach and is secretary of the En Classe Foundation. From Athens, where she currently lives, she always joins Sylvia on her visits to Kinshasa and is also fully involved. With her legal background Natascha is also very valuable when it comes to contracts with our partners.
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Hester lived in Kinshasa from 2006 until 2008 and is one of En Classe's co-founders. She was a French high school teacher before moving to the Congo so no surprise that education as well as Congo are a dear and very important combination to her. She obviously supports En Classe's mission. Now back in the Netherlands, she went back to her teaching job and in that capacity she contributes actively in improving the quality of education. She is planning to join Sylvia and Natascha on their next trip to Kinshasa.
Fleur, co-founder number four, has lived in Kinshasa for three years. She is an architect and has been very valuable to En Classe, especially in the beginning when technical decisions needed to be made regarding the renovations. After her Congo adventure, she moved via Bulgaria (3 years) to Haïti. The learning conditions at primary schools in Haïti are very similar to those in the Congo and therefore Fleur became involved in En Classe again.
Irma, the last co-founder of En Classe, lived in Kinshasa with her family from 2006 until 2010. The decision to help primary school children was an easy one. Proper education is simply one of the most important conditions to give kids a chance for a better future. Although she thinks she was more valuable while living in Kinshasa, she still makes herself very useful and she now concentrates more on the fundraising. Once you have met the incredibly optimistic Congolese people, it's hard to not do something.
Liz Ahrens joined the board of En Classe USA in 2011. She has a background in communications, public relations, brand management and graphic design. She was born in the Netherlands and has lived in Australia, France, Norway, Canada and Switzerland before settling in the US. She is bilingual in Dutch and English. She is thrilled to be able to contribute her time and energy to the En Classe Foundation.
After extensive travels through the African continent, Sandra has always felt close to the challenges of its children and firmly believed in the role of education for them. After many years in the marketing industry, she now dedicates time to En Classe from the New York office, she serves as a sounding board and helps where needed to bring the foundation further. Being bilingual, her translation skills are very helpful!
Claudia was born in Germany, but grew up in The Netherlands before she moved to the U.S. in 1994. Qualified as a lawyer in both The Netherlands and in the State of New York, Claudia has worked as a freelance translator. IN addition, she is one of the founders of Accredentials&More, a company that offers customized e-learning programs to companies and universities. She is excited to join the group of highly motivated volunteers to further the cause of the En Classe Foundation.
Congolese employees
Giovanni Masala, En Classe Kinshasa, read more...
Born and raised in Kinshasa, in Giovanni we found our first Congolese employee. He is only 22 years old, but very wise and studious. Per April 1st, he is our Program Manager in Kinshasa. After high school, he continued his studies at CALI, the Congo-American Language Institute in Kinshasa. He teaches English to whoever is interested and gained some teaching experience. Martin Luther King is his role model and his dream is to make Congo a better place. He is convinced that improving education will help him reach that dream.
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The En Classe Foundation is officially registered and acknowledged in the Netherlands, in the USA and in the DRC.
En Classe has a local team in Kinshasa that consists entirely of young, enthusiastic Congolese people. They oversee and guide all projects in Kinshasa. They are managed by Sylvia van den Brink from Singapore and Michiel Ruiter from Paris. The communication with Sylvia and Michiel mainly takes place via Whats App (calls and texts) and email. Sylvia and Michiel visit Kinshasa two or three times a year to maintain in contact with pupils, schools and the local team.
The local employees receive a small salary and En Classe grants them with a micro credit for personal development purposes, for example, English classes, computer training, leadership training and even a university study is possible. We also do a lot of team building. The official name of the local staff is "Aide Scolaire" which means school assistance. Their main job means that they are actively present at the schools every day in order to be able to give the right guidance and help to the school and to be able to adjust if necessary. For example, their task with respect to the school infrastructure consists of checking the (re) construction and helping the school to take good care of all improvements. The "Aide Scolaires" have been trained by our local partner Hygis so that they can supervise the implementation of the hygiene program professionally, they know the teacher training courses so that they can help the teachers to apply their acquired knowledge and help them with the reading program. Finally, they provide input when students are selected for our youth leadership program.
Team in Kinshasa
Our board
It is 2007.... In the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kinhasa, five Dutch women get their heads together. All five women live amidst the chaos, right in the center of the city and are confronted daily by the Congolese poverty around them. They are convinced that the cycle of poverty can only be broken through education.
What comes next for the five women is weeks of research, deliberation and enquiry with the Congolese and their families. When it becomes clear that the education in Kinshasa is in urgent need of help, the "En Classe" foundation becomes reality.
The education situation in Congo is pitiful. The city school buildings in Kinshasa are in bad shape. The children have neither chairs to sit on nor desks to work at. There are no instructional books and the school grounds are unsafe. When it rains, the classroom floods. Parents often don't have the money to send their children to school in Kinshasa. However, if you create the right conditions, parents will be more likely to send their kids to school.
The name "En Classe" literally means "during lessons" or "at school".