How $15 a month sent Chris to Harvard Law

by Carol Scott · 2010-07-15 07:00:00 UTC
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Before he became a United Nations human rights advocate, Chris Mburu was a bright student in rural Kenya, headed for a career picking coffee beans. A Swedish preschool teacher named Hilde Back decided to sponsor him through a scholarship program and with $15 a month, paid for his primary and secondary education.

Chris went on to attend Harvard Law School and work for the United Nations. But he never forgot the woman who helped pave the way for his success. A new documentary by Jennifer Arnold, A Small Act, follows Chris as he reconnects with Hilde and tells her he has created the Hilde Back Education Fund within Kenya to sponsor more poor schoolchildren who have the potential to succeed. The film also follows three children who can't afford to pay school fees and are vying for scholarship money from the fund. Secondary school can cost less than $10 a week in Kenya, but families picking coffee might earn $1.50 a day - making school an impossible dream for many students.

"How can we change the world? Where are you going to start?" Chris asks during the film. "You can't change the entire world as a whole, so sometimes it's just as good to help one child."

Thinking about all of the obstacles that can keep kids in Kenya - and in the U.S. - from getting access to a quality education can be seriously overwhelming. A Small Act reminds us that change can happen - one child at a time. A Small Act has gotten great reviews and airs on HBO July 18 at 11:45 a.m., July 20 at 9 a.m. and 7:30 p.m., and July 24 at 4 p.m.

Photo credit: A Small Act

Carol Scott is the Education Editor for Change.org.
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