In September 2025, a small, mission-driven nonprofit founded by a Peace Corps volunteer celebrated its twentieth anniversary. The Washington-based Schools for Salone (SfS) has been expanding access to education in Sierra Leone since 2005. To date, SfS has built 47 schools, mostly in last-mile rural communities.

A gathering of supporters came together at the Swedish Club in Seattle, marking two decades of service, impact, and friendship between Sierra Leoneans and Americans.

Allison Sinning, who became Executive Director in January, succeeding SfS founder Cindy Nofziger, views the anniversary as both a time for celebration and reflection.

“Schools for Salone’s founding mission was to expand access to education in Sierra Leone. That will very much remain our focus for the next 20 years, even as the way we work continues to evolve,” said Sinning.

Built on Friendship and Partnership

In 1985, American Peace Corps volunteer Cindy Nofziger met John Sesay while serving in Masanga, Northern Province, Sierra Leone. Years later, after Sierra Leone’s civil war, they reconnected and collaborated with Joseph Williams Lamin and the  Programme for Children to build the first SfS-supported school in Maforeka, Tonkolli District.

“SfS began because of a simple request from my dear friend John, to rebuild the school in his village that had been destroyed in the war,” said Nofziger.

Friendship and partnerships remain central to the organization. SfS has no staff in Sierra Leone, instead it mobilizes resources to fund programs run by local NGOs.

Those five non-profit partners in Sierra Leone build schools and libraries, train teachers, provide girls with menstrual hygiene resources, offer sexual reproduction health education, and supply classrooms with much-needed resources.

Those organizations in turn work closely with chiefs, women’s leaders, school administrations, and parents to ensure that the most vulnerable students and teachers are reached. 

“Our community, the relationships, love and support, is like nothing I could have ever imagined in those early years,” Nofziger said.

“None of this would be possible without our trusted, dedicated partners in Sierra Leone and the generosity of so many people opening their hearts and coming together to make dreams come true in last mile communities, bringing opportunity and hope for a better future for some of the world’s most vulnerable families.”

Community leaders and partners help identify students who need scholarships, teachers who are motivated but require training, or children who might otherwise drop out due to various factors including walking long long distances to school. 

“It’s our partners’ connections to the communities that help us respond quickly and effectively to the needs that arise,” said Sinning.

Over the past 20 years, the organization has achieved much with what Sinning describes as a “small but mighty team.” To date, SfS has built 47 schools and 5 libraries, enrolled over 18,000 students, and trained more than 1,000 teachers. However, the journey has faced challenges, with teacher pay remaining one of the most pressing issues. Many community teachers work without salaries, making it difficult to support themselves and their families.

Sinning noted, “What we can do is help them gain the skills they need to be successful in the classroom through support for certification and continuing professional development, which includes additional training in literacy, reading, and library work that our partners provide.”

For Nofziger, the organization has gone beyond her dreams.

“Our first school in Maforeka is thriving and one of its original students is now the headmaster,” said Nofziger.

Seattle Voices: Supporting Schools for Salone from Afar

The 20th-anniversary celebration was also deeply meaningful to the Seattle community, which has been instrumental in sustaining Schools for Salone throughout the years. From helping raise funds to supporting the construction of new schools and programs, local supporters have ensured the organization’s mission continues to thrive in Sierra Leone. 

Dr. Ken Lans, who has been involved with SfS from its earliest days, helped turn children’s drawings from Maforeka into cards that raised initial funds for the first school. He also helped open the NGOs first bank account, assisted with grant applications, and helped design the initial website. He later helped fund the Madina Primary School in the Falaba district and, in 2025, contributed to the construction of a Senior Secondary School in Koromasilaia, providing students from 14 surrounding communities the opportunity to continue their education. 

Reflecting on his experiences visiting 24 of SfS’s 47 schools, Lans said, “Seeing firsthand not just how little these children and their families have, and how much of a difference we can make, but also how much having that chance to get an education meant to them, has inspired me to contribute as best as I can.”

“SfS does not just put up school buildings and then leave. 47 schools built in 20 years is indeed impressive but the buildings are just the start. The real differences are made in the continuing support provided to those schools. School supplies, books, literacy programmes, teacher training, reusable menstrual pads, reproductive health education, and more recently, bicycles!”

He expressed pride in the strong support SfS receives from the Seattle community. “I am proud to be part of a Seattle community that provides so much support to SfS, both in time and money. It’s because of Cindy’s outreach here, the connections she’s made, including the local Sierra Leone diaspora. With the strong base of support here, including Allison, I see the community continuing to be a big part of SfS’s future. ”

Jon Bayley, a retired teacher and SfS board member since 2012, emphasized on the importance of the schools to every teacher and student in last-mile communities. 

“Every time we build a school, we open doors for more children to become educated citizens of Sierra Leone. Every time we train a teacher, we improve the quality of that education for a large group of children. Every time a child graduates from one of our schools, he or she is able to make bigger and more valuable contributions to the community,” Bayley shared. 

He added that working with the SfS team has enriched his life personally and professionally. He looks forward to “the challenges of improving the quality of education in the villages in Sierra Leone.”

Sissy Peterman, who became involved with SfS around 2005, has contributed to so many efforts including school construction, teacher training, uniforms, and the reusable menstrual hygiene pad program. 

Reflecting on the organization’s achievements, she said, “What stands out most is the utter devotion that the folks involved have for this non-profit and its mission, both in the U.S. and Sierra Leone.”

Looking ahead, Peterman is hopeful for continued growth and emphasized the role of Seattle supporters in the years to come. “In the next 20 years, I hope to see more growth on all levels. I believe that what we can do from Seattle is to provide the funds to keep this organization and all the good work going.”

Schools for Salone: The Next 20 Years Ahead

As the organization enters its next chapter, leadership continues to engage with local partners to evaluate programs, challenges, and best practices, shaping the shared vision for the future of SfS.

Sinning explained, “In 2005, right after the war, school infrastructure was what was needed. Twenty years later, while there is still some need for school buildings, our focus has shifted to what’s happening inside the classroom. This has been SfS’s priority for several years, and that work will deepen and expand in the years ahead.”

From training teachers to improving student learning outcomes, Schools for Salone and its partners are preparing to make an even greater impact. 

From its humble beginnings with a single school in Maforeka to nearly 50 schools today, and with thousands of lives transformed, Schools for Salone’s journey exemplifies how a small organization can make a significant difference. As the organization celebrates two decades of service, it carries the legacy of its founders and remains committed to expanding access to quality education in last-mile communities in Sierra Leone, where education is the only sure pathway to uplift the next generation from poverty.