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Marquis Mission

Kelvin Serem ’17 has made the Blair Serem School in Kenya his life’s work.

Amy Downey

Kelvin Serem ’17 founded the Blair Serem School in 2014 in his village of Kibargoiyet, Kenya, with the help of his high school alma mater, Blair Academy in New Jersey, where he attended on scholarship. Now, the primary school enrolls close to 900 students, more than quadruple its original student population, and has a growing waitlist. “I’m glad we can give them a quality education,” says Serem, who lives less than a mile from the school.

Serem, a government and law and international affairs double major, was a Lafayette long-distance runner. His teammates were early supporters of Serem’s mission; some sold bracelets on campus to help raise money for the school. Over the past several years, head coach Michele Curcio has also ensured the sponsorship of two students.

Next steps for the school would include a larger dining hall, plus solar panels. Solar energy would cut down on high costs and help power everything from kitchen equipment to dormitory lighting so kids can read at night. “One day, my dream is to see one student study at Lafayette,” Serem says, “especially the smartest one.”

Andrew Warshauer ’15 (pictured), a teammate of Serem’s, works in the wireless connectivity space through his own startup, LongFi Solutions, and wanted to help. Once Starlink technology became available to the Kenyan region in 2023, Warshauer began obtaining refurbished computers for a new classroom. In July 2024, he spent a week at the school digging trenches for cables, installing routers, and setting up 25 computer stations. “I have an appreciation for connecting the unconnected,” Warshauer says, “and the power of what the internet means for learning.”

Having access to computers is unrivaled: Students, who often share a screen with a partner, are learning everything from how atoms are arranged to the steps of an algebra equation. It’s also been an opportunity to learn how to email and apply online to colleges, both in Kenya and beyond.

Amy Downey

Amy Downey is the editor-in-chief of Lafayette magazine. She has 20 years of experience in the magazine industry, including being on the editorial staffs at city regional publications such as Boston and Philadelphia. More recently, she was a senior editor for Penn Stater, the alumni magazine of Penn State University, from where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English with a focus in creative writing and publishing. She and her family moved to the Lehigh Valley in 2017.

Marquis Mission

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