Five things we learned from our 2025 site visits

Every year, the Umoja core team visits each of our partner schools. It’s not an audit and it’s not a photo opportunity, we go because the only way to know what’s working is to be there long enough to notice what isn’t. Five things came out of the 2025 trips that changed how we’ll operate next year.

Ratio matters more than headcount. The schools where mentor-to-scholar ratios stayed under 1:8 had retention rates eight points higher than the ones that scaled up faster. We’ll be holding the line on growth rather than chasing scholar count.

Transport is the most invisible cost. We’ve underestimated it for years. Two of our partners are now bundling transport into the scholarship envelope, and the early data on attendance is the strongest signal we’ve seen.

Alumni mentorship needs more structure. The pairs that worked best had monthly cadence and a written rhythm; the pairs that drifted didn’t. We’re piloting a lightweight check-in template across all partners next term. The full set of changes will publish alongside the 2026 annual report.