A few months ago, the lights in the library at Kyangwali Secondary School went out. They tried replacement bulbs, but the light never came back. The school staff even started asking whether they should have a library at all if they can’t get the lights working.
Kyangwali Secondary School is the only secondary school for the refugee settlement, and it’s also the secondary school for several villages and towns surrounding Kyangwali. It serves 2,000 students. And though the school could use some extra space for all those students, they never actually converted the library.
So, on Day 248, we decided to help the school get their library back up and running by installing a new solar panel on the roof of the library. But that wasn’t really enough. Of course it was great to get the space functioning again, but if half the school couldn’t make use of the library it wasn’t enough.
Female students didn’t feel safe making it to the room at night, trying to get from their dormitory (boarding students are common in Uganda) to the library without any light to lead the way. So, we added lights leading the way for the girls, too.
“This solar light is going to chase this darkness which was a threat to our girls in the boarding section,” said the Dean of Studies at the secondary school. “Students will study well in the library which lacked light.”
We had one lightbulb and enough wiring left to bring a light to the Dean’s office, too. “In the past I couldn’t work past 7pm because my office was dark without light, but now I can run exams and make them ready for the following morning with this light.”
Another change made possible by Atomic Data.
