Schools for Salone | Advancing quality education in Sierra Leone through local partnerships
CategoriesNewsFor nearly four years, Joanna Mattson had helped support SfS’s work in Sierra Leone from thousands of miles away in Seattle. As Schools for Salone’s (SfS) Finance and Business Information Manager, she had read reports and listened to countless stories about communities in the West African nation. However, nothing could have prepared her for her […]
CategoriesChildren Girls' EducationA Growing Menstrual Hygiene Crisis in Sierra Leone For thousands of girls across Sierra Leone, access to menstrual hygiene products is not simply a health issue. It is directly connected to education, confidence, and opportunity. Yet today, many girls are at risk of losing that support. A global funding crisis has forced several international organizations […]
CategoriesChildren Girls' EducationToday, as the world marks World Menstrual Hygiene Day, one message is clear: no girl should have to choose between her education and her period. Yet, across Sierra Leone, period poverty continues to prevent many girls from attending school confidently and consistently. Limited access to menstrual hygiene products, stigma surrounding menstruation, and inadequate reproductive health […]
CategoriesChildren Girls' EducationGetting girls into school is no longer the only challenge in Sierra Leone. Keeping them there is. At the recent “Close the Secondary School Gap: Girls Must Graduate!” webinar hosted by Seattle-based NGO, Schools for Salone, education experts and practitioners came together to unpack a troubling reality: while enrolment of girls in schools have improved, […]
CategoriesGirls' EducationThis Women’s Month, Schools for Salone is hosting an important conversation about the future of girls education in Sierra Leone. On March 25th, 2026, education leaders and advocates will come together for a live webinar titled, “Close the Secondary School Gender Gap: Girls Must Graduate!”
CategoriesImpact Reports School BuildsIn 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 […]
CategoriesNewsThe dust on the road to last mile communities in Koinadugu and Falaba districts rarely settles. It hangs heavy, a reminder of the distance: bad roads, no running water, no electricity, and the quiet, persistent grind of economic hardship. Most who can, leave. They chase the promise of bigger towns like Kabala or Freetown. But […]
CategoriesNewsIn the quiet farming town of Musaia, far away from the busy streets of Kabala, a woman stands at the center of a growing movement for education. Her name is Zainab Sheku Marah, and she is the Head Mistress of the Movement of Faith Islamic Primary School. Marah was born in Mongor, but her education […]
CategoriesNewsKoromasilaia is a remote community to the northwest of Falaba District. The population is estimated at 1,500. Most families here are subsistence farmers who earn less than $2 a day. For years, children in Koromasilaia village had three choices if they wanted to attend senior secondary school: walk 14 miles each day, move away, or pay for transport to and from Kabala.
CategoriesEvents School BuildsAs the year draws to a close, SfS is calling its community of supporters to mark their calendars for a vital moment of reflection, connection, and impact. A Giving Tuesday webinar will be held on December 2nd, 2025 at 9:30 AM under the theme, “From Bricks to Books: Driving Academic Excellence in Last-Mile Communities.”
