About Us

Changing the world one girl at a time

KEEP is the Katonah Education Exchange Program.

Our mission is to keep girls in school.

The Call to Action

Tragically, gender discrimination and poverty make millions of young women the victims of violence every day. Education gives girls a chance to become economically self sufficient and equips them to fight oppression. KEEP supports the education efforts of the Kakenya Center for Excellence, an NGO helping educate at-risk girls in Kenya.

Our Approach

Since December 2014, KEEP has been raising funds for a grant to the Kakenya Center for Excellence (KCE), a boarding school for girls in rural Kenya. These girls, who typically are forced to marry when entering puberty, instead pursue their education at KCE. Enrollment at KCE also protects all students from female genital cutting. Learning how KCE educates, protects and empowers these most vulnerable girls, we feel inspired and motivated to help. We have set a goal of sponsoring all the girls in the KCE eighth grade.

Our Inspiration

In their book Half the Sky, writers Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn profiled remarkable women living in perilous situations in developing countries. These women found ways to overcome oppression. But they didn’t just help themselves and their families. They kept going until they could find a way to help others.

When our book club read their stories, we had one thought: If these women could do so much despite overwhelming challenges, how could we not respond by supporting them?

Compelled by the authors’ premise that educating girls and women could elevate the lives of entire villages, we chose the overall mission of keeping girls in school.

Our Founding Members

The seven founding members of KEEP came from our book club.

They are: (back row): Elizabeth McGoldrick, Elena Rover, Cynthia Braun, Celeste Crosby

(front row):Jeanne Cass, Ruthie Rosenberg, Sioban Keane

Today, five of KEEP’s founders act as the informal board of directors for KEEP.

Here’s an article about us in Women’s Day magazine.
Click the image to see the full article.