Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa staff and faculty face Oshwal in a football “friendly”
The Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa Choir Hits the Top Note
Kenya Music Festival 2014 at the Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa
Advancements in the Middle Years Programme at the Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa
The Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa Wins 2014 Cricket Tournament
A Student's Experience at the Blood Donation Drive at Aga Khan Academy, Mombasa
Aga Khan Academy Mombasa shines at Kenya Music Festival
Danish Dhamani (Class of 2013): Everything’s gonna be Orai
Critical thinker. Life-long learner. Global citizen. Three traits, fostered during his time at the Aga Khan Academy, that characterise Danish Dhamani as he now graduates from Drexel University with a BSc in Mechanical Engineering. A 2013 graduate from the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa, Danish was an integral part of the residential community and president of the Student Representative Council during his two years at the school.
When asked about his most cherished memories, Dhamani reminisced about the sense of community that developed as a result of the residential program. “People became really close to one another, like an extended family. We had meals together, we celebrated birthdays and special occasions together, and we studied together… One really memorable event for me was singing ‘Happy birthday and kata keki’ (‘cut the cake’ in Swahili).” Danish’s term serving as president of the Student Representative Council was similarly rooted in the idea of building a familial sense of community, and most of his events were geared towards achieving this goal.
Four years later, Danish continues to think outside the box and combine his personal interests with making a difference in the society. Upon arriving at university, he discovered that he needed to improve his public speaking skills. Danish realised that this is a problem that affects many people around the world.
His solution to this problem? Orai.
Orai is a mobile app that aims to make anyone become a better public speaker using artificial intelligence. From tracking the number of ‘ums’ and ‘you knows’, to assessing the “tone” of your speech, the app provides a comprehensive report and suggestions on how you could become a better presenter. The intelligent engineering of the algorithms and attention to detail in the app literally leaves no person speechless.
At present, his venture has won approximately $50,000 in prizes. Orai won 2nd place in the Microsoft US Imagine Cup Finals and advanced with 6 other ventures to the Imagine Cup World Finals in July 2017. Motivated to take his venture to the next level, along with his co-founder, Danish will be working full-time on Orai post-graduation. His efforts and dedication towards Orai has now impacted the lives of over 30,000 users around the world.
As he reflects on his time at the Academy, Danish specifically remembers his classes with Mr. Alchin. “He looked at the world very differently,” he notes. Teachers such as Mr. Alchin instilled in Danish the capacity and willingness to think outside the proverbial box. In preparing him for university, both the International Baccalaureate curriculum and the opportunity to engage in extracurricular activities broadened his perspective towards the world and made him a lifelong learner.
His vision for the future is to be able to reside in a world where individuals are exposed to the global issues such as food insecurity and global warming from a young age, and are equipped with knowledge on latest technological advancements to engage in problem solving and action driven initiatives.
By Karina Hussein
Best IB results to date for Aga Khan Academy Mombasa
Anahita Aman (Class of 2020): Building on her Academy experiences to pursue international development
Anahita Aman, a graduate of the Class of 2020, studied at the Aga Khan Academy Hyderabad for eight years. Currently pursuing history at the University College London, she hopes to build a career in international development.
Having spent her fundamental years at the Academy in Hyderabad, Anahita credits the Academy for shaping her into who she is today, not just as a person, but in her interests and career choices as well. Anahita lived in the residences on campus, and she misses that feeling of knowing everyone and the close-knit community, “which is hard to find in college when you are an international student in a different country,” she expressed.
Anahita appreciates the opportunities provided to her at the Academy, such as the creativity, activity, service initiatives she pursued along with the internship programme she participated in, which strengthened her application to her current field of study at university. She believes the International Baccalaureate (IB) programmes at the Academy helped her explore more about who she is as a person.
“Even though you are working in criteria and a certain structure, you still have the space to express your viewpoint."
The one experience from the Academy in Hyderabad that firmly stuck with Anahita was the Model United Nations (MUN) club, in which she served as the secretary-general for the 2019-2020 academic year. MUN taught her a lot in terms of management, planning, communication, leadership and even finance as you work towards an event dealing with multiple stakeholders in the Academy. Known for her calm nature, Anahita was a completely different person in the MUN.
“That was a fun thing, I never knew that side of me existed until I was put into the position. I didn’t know if I could do it but when you are in the atmosphere and put in that position I think some part of you just takes charge. That’s a new side of me that I saw, which boosted my confidence because I realised I could lead people if I needed to and it was a great thing.”
Anahita calls the Academy a second home, practically growing up there. She believes the IB, teachers, the residences and her friends helped and impacted her in more ways than one and have had a significant impact on who she is today.
