Our Story
From a Dream to a Labor of Love
When Rwandan Senator Aloisea Inyumba attended the “Women Waging Peace” Conference at Harvard University in 2000, sponsored by Ambassador Swanee Hunt, she had a dream of educating more girls in her country. She wanted to shape and transform a site where many were killed in the Genocide Against the Tutsi in 1994 and turn it into a place of joy for future female leaders to be nurtured and taught.
At the Conference, Aloisea met Sister Ann Fox of the Paraclete Center (an educational after-school center for local youth) in South Boston who shared her dream of educating girls. For the next 4 years, Sister Ann and Aloisea stayed in touch about their dream of building a girls school in Rwanda and gathered an interested group of philanthropic women from Boston - who became known as the “Group of 8’ - to help.
In 2004, their dream was given the green light and the land they needed was donated by the Mayor of Bugesera, Francois Nkurunziza. At a time when mandatory grade-school education was a new idea in Rwanda, and most parents enrolled their sons, not daughters, in school past the 6th grade, a girls middle school was enthusiastically welcomed by Rwanda’s Minister of Education, Joseph Murekeraho.
In 2008, the Maranyundo Girls School opened with visitors from near and far and Aloisea and Sister Ann’s dream was realized.
In remembrance of our co-founders who played an integral role in shaping the vision and foundation of the Maranyundo Initiative, their enduring legacy will forever resonate within the essence of Maranyundo.
The First Trip
Timeline
KEY DATES:
-
Sister Ann Fox meets Senator Aloisea Inyumba at Harvard University at the Women Waging Peace Symposium, hosted by Ambassador Swanee Hunt
-
Maranyundo Girls School (MGS) welcomes its first middle school class with 60 students in its first year.
-
MGS welcomes high school students with a new and improved campus including a state-of-the-art STEM Center and Makerspace to provide a science and technology focused education.
-
MGS takes lessons learned during the pandemic, as well as long held best practices, and shares and extends resources beyond MGS to other Benebikira schools and schools and the Maranyundo Training and Learning Center is launched.
Learn all the details of our journey and see the pictures that tell the inspiring story of Maranyundo:
2023 - The Maranyundo Learning Institute will break ground in June of 2023. The Institute will allow Maranyundo to share best practices with more schools, more teachers, and more community members even when school is in session.
The Maranyundo Girls School hosted a teacher training for the Playful Engineering Based Learning (PEBL) Project in collaboration with Tufts University's Center for Engineering Education and Outreach and Department of Education and support from the LEGO Foundation empowering teachers with Novel Engineering and Arduino to inspire the next generation of innovators!
2021 - The Maranyundo Girls School hosted the Bridge2Rwanda inaugural Isomo Academy where students worked to improve their English language, reading, and critical thinking skills during an 8 week program.
2021 - With the increase of hybrid learning due to COVID, Maranyundo gave laptops to each high school student at MGS. Thanks to generous foundation funding, we were also able to extend laptops, science equipment, teacher trainings, and books to other schools, students, and teachers in the Benebikira network.
March 2020 - Covid-19 becomes a pandemic and the girls leave MGS and teachers and students stay connected through e-learning on mobile phones supported by Maranyundo. In November 2020, thanks to the hard work and preparations of Sister Laetitia and the staff, the Maranyundo Girls School welcomed students back to campus after being shut down for 7 months.
2020 - As Sister Marie Juvenal moved into her new role as the Benebikira School Coordinator overseeing all 17 Benebikira Schools in Rwanda, Sister Laetitia Musanabaganwa became the new Head of School at Maranyundo.
The STEM Center is completed and the first high school graduation is conducted with attendance from the First Lady, Madam Jeannette Kagame, Sister Juvenal, and the Maranyundo Initiative.
2017 - MGS welcomes over 100 girls from all over Africa as well as educators from Yale University for the Yale Young African Scholars program.
2016 - Every one of the 60 Maranyundo students ranked in Division 1 on the middle school national exam, and 16 students received top scores on the exam. Maranyundo students Mbabazi Belise and Teta Sheilla, were named as the first and second ranked students in the whole country!
2015 - The first high school class is admitted to MGS. The construction of the high school continues, and the new dormitory, bathrooms, and shower facilities are built. Additionally, an expanded dining hall and 6 new classrooms are built.
2013 - Construction begins on a multi-purpose hall for the school and community to use on new land. The Parents’ Committee holds a fundraising event at the graduation to raise money for the expansion that is attended by over 600 people; nearly $100,000 is raised!
2013 - Faculty from Westover School in Connecticut and Tufts University design a two phase technology training program and visit the school twice to provide training and oversee installation of new computers in a computer lab.
2011 - Sister Marie Juvenal is named Head of School. Additionally, National O Level exam scores are released and MGS is ranked as the #1 girls school in the country and #2 overall. Later that year, Maranyundo teachers traveled to Boston to be a part of a Teacher Residency Program at Tufts.
2011 - Maranyundo Initiative formally transfers ownership and operation of the Maranyundo Girls School to the people of Rwanda under the Benebikira Congregation. The school remains an independent school, open to girls of all faiths. The Maranyundo Initiative agrees to provide on-going support. Cows, a traditional gift of honor in Rwanda, were gifted to the Maranyundo School in honor of the school handover.
2009 - The second class of 60 girls begin, school is at capacity of 120 students.
2008 - The Maranyundo Girls School is dedicated and opened with First Lady Jeanette Kagame as the guest of honor. The school presents a book called "Dreams of My Future", authored and illustrated by its students, to the First Lady. The event is attended by donors, community members, and dignitaries and The Maranyundo Initiative is established as an official non-profit in the same year.
2006 - A groundbreaking ceremony is held at the school to commemorate the building and is attended by the people of Nyamata and supporters of the school and construction begins. A tree is planted to immortalize the occasion that still flourishes at the site today.
2005 - The school is given its name, Maranyundo, after the hill and stone quarry overlooking the school which produced ‘a rock so hard that it cannot be broken.’ At the dedication, Mayor Gaspard announces that the land was the site of a former concentration camp.
2004 - Senator Aloisea Inyumba and Sister Ann acquire land in Nyamata, Rwanda. A Boston Globe article, talking about building a new school for girls in Rwanda, catches the attention of Beth Floor and Sue Pucker (pictured above), who already knew Sister Ann through the Boston Children’s Museum Board of Directors, and they express interest in supporting the exciting project.
2000 - In September, Senator Aloisea Inyumba of Rwanda attends the ‘Women Waging Peace Conference’ at Harvard University. There she meets Sister Ann Fox of the Paraclete Center in South Boston and Former Ambassador Swanee Hunt. Sister Ann invites Aloisea to a Thanksgiving dinner to meet others at the Paraclete Center in South Boston.
Why Support a Girls Middle and High School in Rwanda?
Many reasons:
A devastating genocide that took the lives of almost one million people
Traditionally large educational gaps between girls and boys and the strong desire to close that gap and empower girls.
An understanding of the importance of women in leadership. Rwanda has a mandate that 30% of parliamentary positions must be reserved for women, in 2020 more than 60% of Rwanda’s parliament positions were held by women.
A real community spirit of self-help and cooperation known as ‘Umuganda’. On the last Saturday of each month, Rwandans gather for a day of community service to work on a difficult task which may include building roads, building schools, laying out agricultural plots to provide food to the community or picking up garbage and litter. The morning of service ends with a community meeting and important announcements from the local and national government.
And much more work remains as access to early childhood education is very limited, school classrooms are often overcrowded, there is an urban-rural divide in education, enrollment in secondary education sharply declines to only 46%, much less than that of the 100% enrollment in elementary education. And less than 4% of Rwandans 25 or older have had any type of higher education. (Source World Education News)
For the founders and our Board of Directors, all of these are worthy reasons. But most will tell you that while one of these may have initially interested them, their real passion and connection came once they visited Rwanda, met the students, and toured the school. There is something infectious to their smiles, inspiring about what they have overcome, and captivating about their dreams for their future. There is something very special in those ‘thousand hills’ that you cannot put your finger on, but you can feel it, and you want to return.
Before the school was built, Sister Ann visited Rwanda 12 times, bringing with her different groups of the original founders of the Maranyundo Initiative and most have returned again and again and again.
Staff
Jessi Smolow
Executive Director
Jessi Smolow joined the Maranyundo Initiative as Executive Director in August 2019. Prior to this, she served as the DREAMS Program Manager with World Education which involved overseeing a 3-country USAID-funded project in Tanzania, Swaziland, and Zimbabwe that targeted over 4,000 girls and young women to stay in school.
Jessi spent the last decade developing and implementing various education and health programs in Central East Africa – including three years living in Kigali, Rwanda where she first heard of Maranyundo! In addition to her international work, she is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker working with children and families. She has her Master’s in Social Work from the University of Pennsylvania and her Bachelor’s of Science in Psychology from Penn State University.
Maureen Isimbi
Development and Operations Coordinator
As the Development and Operations Coordinator, Maureen joined Maranyundo Initiative in the fall of 2023. Before this, she worked as an Associate Education Designer at Education Design Lab, primarily designing learning experiences for non-traditional learners.
She graduated from Tufts University in Engineering Psychology and is now pursuing her Master’s in Learning Design, Innovation & Technology at Harvard University. She is passionate about working with Maranyundo because it is an opportunity to contribute to and learn from a community that has shaped her values and perspectives. She was born and raised in Kigali, Rwanda where she finished her middle school studies at FAWE Gisozi which is part of the Benebikira schools Maranyundo now supports.
Board of Directors
Lisa Tellekson
Board Chair
READ BIO
Lisa is an experienced professional with over thirty years in the field of fundraising and administration She has worked at non-profit organizations whose supporters are passionate about the mission including New England Conservatory of Music, Oxfam America, The Community Group, and WEEMA International. Lisa is currently the Chief of Staff for the CEO of the Lowell Community Health Center.
Lisa’s introduction to the Maranyundo Girls School was in 2005 when she worked with the founding group of dedicated volunteers to raise the funds needed to build the school in Nyamata, Rwanda. She followed the progress of the schools and the girls with pride ever since, and joined the Board in December 2020: “I am delighted to join the Maranyundo Board. It was a true honor and a privilege to be involved at the very beginning. Aloisea and Sister Ann’s vision for the school was inspiring and working with the volunteers who came together to make the dream a reality was incredibly rewarding. I’m delighted to continue my Maranyundo journey and support opportunities for these incredibly wonderful girls.”
She has a B. A. in English and German from St. Olaf College. She and her husband, Howard Amidon, live in North Andover with their dog Perry who is doing his best to take the place of their three grown children.
Melissa Carr
Vice Chair and Education Committee Chair
READ BIO
Melissa joined the board of the Maranyundo Initiative in December of 2018. She had been following the story of the Maranyundo Girls School for years and turned a dream into reality in 2016 when she spent a month living, teaching, and learning at the school together with her husband and their three daughters. She is inspired by the amazing community and the love of learning that are the hallmarks of the school.
Currently, Melissa is in her eighteenth year of teaching social studies courses in world history and international issues at Concord-Carlisle High School. Previously she directed the Strengthening Democratic Institutions Project and Caspian Studies Program at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. In her role there she also attended the Women Waging Peace conference (albeit with the Russian delegation) where the seeds for the Maranyundo Initiative were set.
Melissa has a long-standing interest in cross-cultural education. She lived and worked in Russia for six years directing cultural and educational exchange programs. She also served for seventeen years on the board of PH International which works to build strong global communities by fostering civic engagement, cross-cultural learning, and increased opportunities in the digital age.
.
Melissa holds a Masters in Public Affairs from Princeton University where she focused on international development and education policy and a BA in Political Science from Amherst College.
Meredith Hanrahan
Secretary and Governance Committee Chair
READ BIO
Meredith Hanrahan is the SVP/GM of Ecommerce and SMB at Monster Worldwide. She is a seasoned general manager with 25+ years of experience. Recently, she co-founded Vivoom, a mobile video app and platform that won MITX’s 2015 Most Innovative Ad Platform and Best Mobile Campaign. As an experienced Chief Marketing Officer for 10+ years she has led cross-functional teams for leading digital and consumer brand companies such as Lycos (for which she received a Forbes Best of Web Award). Prior to this, she led brand management teams at General Mills, Lindt Chocolate, Heublein (now Diego), and Miller Lite. She is a mentor at the Harvard i-Lab, serves on the MIT Enterprise Forum’s Innovation Series Board and served on the advisory board for Chitika, Inc.. She also served on a marketing advisory board for an educational non-profit in Atlanta that helped high school dropouts graduate via an alternative school model. Prior to this, she was a strategy consultant with KPMG and McKinsey & Co. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BA from the University of New Hampshire.
Isabelle Byusa
READ BIO
Isabelle has a long history of being connected and involved with the Maranyundo Initiative. She is the daughter of board member, Kathy Kantengwa and went to Westover High School in Connecticut where Founder Anna Pollina was the Head of the school and took her under her wing when she came to the US from Rwanda.
Isabelle currently teaches at the International University in Geneva, Switzerland. She has worked in higher education institutions, notably at Wheaton College where she developed and ran international high school summer programs, and Harvard University where she served as a teaching fellow for various courses. She has also worked at Babson College creating education materials geared to improving teaching activities in classrooms related to entrepreneurship. Previously, she was the Country Director in Rwanda of IDEA for Africa where she focused on developing youth entrepreneurial leadership programs.
Isabelle holds a Master’s in International Education Policy from Harvard Graduate School of Education ‘17 and a B.S in Business Administration from Babson College ’13 and is excited to support outreach to alumni with MI.
Leanne Chase
READ BIO
Leanne has spent the last 15 years working with clients to improve their marketing and communications, most recently for Gannett. She started her career in television production producing Boston Red Sox baseball games, college hockey games and was awarded an Emmy Award for producing the Opening & Closing Ceremonies for the 2002 Winter Olympic games. She holds a BS from Suffolk University and an MS from Boston University. Leanne was drawn to the Maranyundo Initiative as educating and inspiring girls around the world is one of her passions, she joined the board as she saw what passion + planning could accomplish at the Maranyundo Girls School.
Lani Cooper
Co-Treasurer
READ BIO
Lani Cooper has been involved with the Maranyundo Initiative since its establishment. With over 15 years of business development and marketing experience, Lani has worked as a market and strategic research consultant for a healthcare consulting firm since 2005. Lani was previously the Manager of Business Development and Marketing at VNA of Care New England, where she was responsible for all aspects of business planning, new program design and implementation and physician relations. She previously held product and process management positions at several major healthcare organizations including Providence Health System and Children’s Hospital in Seattle, Georgetown Hospital in DC and Children’s Hospital in Boston. Lani holds an MBA from University of Washington and a BA from Hamilton College.
Kristin Foss
READ BIO
Kristin is an experienced technologist with 20+ years in software development management working at companies such as Salesforce and Google. Kristin has been a long-time friend of the Initiative and visited the Maranyundo school with her family in 2015 where ”she fell in love with the girls, the empowering STEM mission of the school and the commitment to academic excellence.” She also supports other MIT programs in Rwanda around sustainable energy and is interested in the opportunities around the e-waste recycling efforts. Kristin has a passion for coaching and mentoring and using those talents to help the Initiative advance its mission. A graduate of MIT and Washington University in St Louis, Kristin joined the Board in March 2021 and is “very excited to work with the amazing women on this board and eager to help Maranyundo lean into the use of technology to capitalize on virtual learning opportunities”. She and her husband, Paulmer, live with their two sons and four dogs in Palo Alto, California.
Kathy Kantengwa, MD
READ BIO
Kathy Kantengwa has held senior-level technical and management positions as a professional planner and manager for public health programs for over 25 years. Her work has focused in areas of health systems strengthening for the delivery of a high-quality package of basic health services including public policy design, HRH planning and development, health financing governance, integrated community health services (HIV, Malaria, TB, FP/RH, Mother and Child wellness); and the use of technology for universal health access. She is currently based in Geneva, Switzerland providing technical support to the Global Fund teams in charge of political and civil society advocacy for increased domestic funding for health and also collaborate to improve the engagement and participation of African constituencies to the Global fund Board. Kathy is very passionate about empowering girls through education for development, she is an active member of the Forum for African Women Educationalists, Rwanda chapter.Kathy Kantengwa earned her Doctor of Medicine degree at the University of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, and her Master of Public Administration degree from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. She speaks fluent English, French, Kinyarwanda, Lingala and Swahili..
Claire Kokoska
READ BIO
Originally from New England, Claire lives in Providence, RI. She's spent nearly a decade developing renewable energy and energy efficiency projects for municipalities, school districts, and nonprofits.
In September 2018, Claire was introduced to the Maranyundo Initiative and the Maranyundo Girls School by Lani Cooper, then Interim Director. Claire is grateful to have travelled to Rwanda in 2019 with Board members and Sustainers to visit the Maranyundo Girls School, Kigali, and join the festivities for the 100th anniversary of the Benebikira Order. Over the last few years, she has worked with the Maranyundo Development team to assist with Development Committee efforts, newsletters, photography, graphic design, and social media. Claire is thrilled and honored to join the Board.
Juliet Musabeyezu, MD
READ BIO
Juliet Musabeyezu is a medical student at Harvard Medical School. She first moved to Boston from Kigali in 2011 to attend Harvard College, where she graduated with a degree in Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology. She then spent two years working in Global Health - first with Last Mile Health in Liberia designing community health worker programs and supporting mobile clinics in the aftermath of Ebola, and then with the University of Global Health Equity in Rwanda building curriculum for a Master’s Degree Program in Global Health Equity. Her interests include women’s health and reproductive justice. In her free time, Juliet is keenly interested in short-story fiction writing and storytelling more broadly.
Juliet first learned about the Maranyundo Girls School from her friend and classmate Isabelle Byusa. She joined the Maranyundo Initiative excited to work with a committed group of women eager to improve education for young women in Rwanda through innovation, community, and a strong sense of purpose.
Lucy Nshuti Mbabazi
READ BIO
Nshuti leads Africa Policy & Partnerships at the United Nations Better Than Cash Alliance, working with regional and continental organizations to accelerate the adoption and usage of digital payments as a catalyst for digital financial inclusion for every African for the success of the one Africa market. Before joining the United Nations, Nshuti served as Ecobank Group Merchant Acquiring Manager, leading digital merchant solutions for 33 African countries; Country Manager Rwanda, Burundi, and Malawi for Visa Inc. Africa, and Strategy and Policy Advisor to Rwanda Development Board IT Department.
Nshuti served as President of Girls in ICT Rwanda, which is inspiring more girls into STEM; Founding Board Chair, Leo Africa Institute, which is nurturing Young and Emerging Leaders across Africa; Non-Executive Director BBOXX Rwanda Board, which is powering Rwandan homes with solar electricity; Chair Rwanda Internet Community Association (RICTA), which represents the interests of Rwandans on the internet, and Advisory Board Member to Girl Effect, which worked to enable Rwanda’s adolescent girls to reach their full potential. Nshuti holds a Master of Science in Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School of Government and a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology & Management from Laroche University.
Daphne Petri
READ BIO
Daphne Petri has been on the Maranyundo Initiative Board since 2011 and served her tenure as Chair from 2014 to 2019. Daphne is the Principal of Daphne Petri Architects, and in addition to MI serves on the Board of Directors of Gardens for Health International and on the National Advisory Board for the Union of Concerned Scientists. She is on the Advisory Committee for Jewish Family and Children’s Service Center for Early Relationship Support and has been a longtime Volunteer with the Visiting Moms Program at JFCS. BA Kirkland/Hamilton College ’72, Master of Architecture MIT ’76. Daphne lives in Massachusetts and is married with two grown daughters who live in San Francisco. She thrives on an active life of service at home and abroad and fun with family and friends.
Madhuri Ravi
Co-Treasurer
READ BIO
Madhuri is Global Head of Information Reporting and Tax Withholding at Interactive Brokers LLC. Interactive Brokers is a global broker-dealer with offices worldwide and over $12.7 billion in equity capital. In this role, Madhuri oversees US and international information reporting and tax withholding worldwide for all IB’s locations. Madhuri joined IB in 2017, bringing extensive industry experience across several international firms. Madhuri graduated cum laude from Boston University, received a JD from the University of Arizona School of Law and a L.L.M in Taxation from Boston University School of Law. She is a member of both the New York and Massachusetts Bar.
Madhuri believes that women should help and lift each other whenever they can. She is excited to join Maranyundo's Board not just for her love of STEM, but also for her goal of educating women. She is excited to see what the girls of Maranyundo come up with to help themselves and become the brilliant women of the future.
Deborah Scarff
READ BIO
Deborah Scarff trained to become an X-ray technician, working in several hospitals in Boston, and later relocating to work in Honolulu, Hawaii. While in Hawaii, she developed an interest in photography and decided to combine that interest with her X-ray career by pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Photographic Communications at the Rochester Institute of Technology. After graduation she worked at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary before starting her own business, “The Better Light,” which specialized in both medical imaging and high-quality commercial and architectural photography. She was commissioned by the Episcopal Cathedral in Boston to create and exhibit a one-person photographic experience called “God’s Light in Holy Places.” The exhibit was later expanded into a published book of environmental portraits of Episcopal priests, entitled Lifestyles of the Spiritually Rich and Famous. After a 30-year career, she recently “retired” in order to more fully concentrate on her interests in helping women and enhancing women’s rights and education, especially through international outreach opportunities. She was introduced to the Maranyundo Girls School through Trinity Episcopal Church Concord in 2011 and joined the Maranyundo Initiative board in 2016.
Patricia Ribakoff
READ BIO
Patricia (Patty) Ribakoff has focused her energies as an active leader of many organizations throughout Boston as a Trustee and Chair of several major development campaigns for the past 20 years. Patty served as a Trustee of Massachusetts General Hospital and Co-Chair of their philanthropy program for the past decade. During that time she co-chaired the successful Campaign for the Third Century of Medicine raising $1.7 billion. She currently serves as Chair of the Mass General Board of Trustees Committee on Community Health as well as Chair of the campaign for this aspect of the hospital’s mission. She serves on the MGH President’s Council, the Advisory Board for Mass General Hospital for Children and the Psychiatry Leadership Council. In 2006, she co-chaired the Annual Campaign for the Combined Jewish Philanthropies.
Patty also serves as a Trustee of Smith College and The Vincent Memorial Hospital. She is a member of the Board of UNICEF, The Maranyundo School for Girls in Rwanda, Project Healthy Children and serves as a Director of Automotive Management, Inc. Prior to her work in the non-profit arena, Patty was a senior vice president of Technimetrics, Inc., an information services company providing marketing strategy to large corporations. Patty holds a B.A. in Government from Smith College.
Chantal Umuhoza
READ BIO
Chantal Umuhoza is from Kigali, Rwanda. She went to the Maranyundo Girls School for middle school and graduated from MGS in 2012. Since there was no high school at MGS at the time, she went to Gashora Girls Academy and graduated in 2015. From there, she studied at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA, and received a BA in Physics in 2020. She continued her studies at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and received a Master of Science degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering. She currently works as a Power Systems Engineer at a Power Systems Consulting company called RLC Engineering based in South Portland, Maine.
Chantal is excited to join the Maranyundo Board to give back to what Maranyundo gave to her. She feels she is where she is today because of her education at MGS. She wants to join the Post-Secondary Committee to help students navigate this critical stage of their lives and provide mentorship and guidance.
Julia Samton, MD
READ BIO
Julia Samton MD has served on the Maranyundo board since 2018. She is a board-certified neurologist and psychiatrist in private practice in New York City. Her unique training gives her the expertise to diagnose and treat a diverse range of mood disorders. Her specialties include attention deficit disorder (ADHD), depression, anxiety, stress management, insomnia, and other conditions causing poor mood and behavioral health. This expertise allows her to examine the impact of these diagnoses on affect, behavior and emotion at the individual and community level.
She is affiliated with New York Hospital Weill Cornell Medical Center and Lenox Hill Hospital, and is the founder of Manhattan Neuropsychiatric PC as well as co-founder of The Midtown Practice in Manhattan. At Manhattan Neuropsychiatric, Dr. Samton also provides neuropsychological testing to diagnose and treat ADHD, guide career selection, and help optimize professional and academic achievement.
Julia first found out about Maranyundo from her good friend and Board member, Lani Cooper as well as Lani’s mother Joyce Fletcher. She has visited the school on several occasions and is inspired to help more through the Development Committee.
Caroline Wang
College Counseling Chair
READ BIO
Caroline is a former engineer and a committed volunteer in the fields of education, public service, and microfinance. Currently, Caroline is the Chair of the Friends of the PKG Public Service Center at MIT where she advises on projects and efforts to create and spread awareness of the Center's student activities and achievements. She is also a member of the Council for the Arts at MIT, reviewing grant proposals from students and faculty for funding for their arts-related projects, and supporting MIT’s Arts Scholars, and she serves as an Educational Counselor for MIT, interviewing high school seniors applying for undergraduate admission. For the microfinance organization, Kiva.org, she leads a team of volunteer French translators. Caroline has been a long-time supporter of Maranyundo and visited the school in 2015 with her family; she joined the Maranyundo Board in early 2021, excited to help enable these enthusiastic young women to enter STEM fields. Caroline has a lot of experience mentoring young high school students and wants to apply her experience to support the school's academic mission, as well as help advance the college prep and counseling strategies. Caroline has degrees from the University of California San Diego, with a MS in Bioengineering, and MIT, with a BS in Mechanical Engineering. Caroline has two children and shares MIT alumni status with her son, a recent graduate of MIT, and lives in Menlo Park, California.
Annie Weiss, PhD
Interim Development Chair
READ BIO
Annie Weiss PhD, is a licensed Psychologist with over 20 years of experience working with children, adolescents and adults in inner-city schools and therapeutic settings. She has previously designed and run therapeutic programs for high school students with severe mental illness. She currently sees patients in her private practice. Annie first visited the Maranyundo School in 2013 and has followed its growth since that time. She is excited to join the board to support the development of academic and mental health programming for students across Rwanda. She holds a BA from Williams College and a PhD in Psychology from Tulane University. She completed her internship training at Boston University’s Center for Multicultural Training and her Post-Doctoral fellowship at Cambridge Hospital. Annie and her husband live in Boston, MA with their three young children.