Cameroonian supports education in home village

After a grueling journey from a small village in Cameroon, Pierre Nzuah, 30, has landed himself in a Master’s program at Clarkson University.

Now, he is supporting elementary education in his home village through a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) he started with Ellen J. Rocco called Against All Odds: Outreach for Learning.

“I said I wanted to get an education because afterward, with my education, I want to help people back home in a similar situation,” Mr. Nzuah said. “That’s exactly what we are doing now.”

Mr. Nzuah started his education in his hometown of Baligham, a village of about 10,000 people. After primary school, which is about the equivalent of seventh grade, Mr. Nzuah’s only option for furthering his education was to travel 10 miles by foot to Santa, a market town where a secondary school was located.

He made the trip down the dirt road each week with everything he needed to live on his own, including all of his food, and rented a room, often with another student. This began at the age of 14.

He was one of only five students from his elementary class of 37 who sought education beyond primary school, and one of two to complete a secondary education.

“The percentage that go beyond primary school is very low,” Mr. Nzuah said.

After completing his secondary education, Mr. Nzuah enrolled in a year-long computer course and took on a job at a cyber café. While an employee at the café, Mr. Nzuah began researching colleges.

“I wasn’t making any money working at a cyber café 14 hours a day,” he said.

Mr. Nzuah came across SUNY Potsdam originally but was redirected to SUNY Canton because he was looking to pursue an electrical engineering degree.

After submitting transcripts, Mr. Nzuah was accepted at SUNY Canton.

“I knew I was coming to SUNY Canton, but I had no idea about where I was going,” Mr. Nzuah joked, referring to the harsh weather in the north country. He said he left on an 80-degree day in Cameroon and arrived in sub-zero temperatures in Syracuse days before his first semester in January 2011.

After his first semester, Mr. Nzuah realized he had nowhere to stay over the summer.

“At the end of my first semester, I had no place to go,” Mr. Nzuah said. “I couldn’t go home because I didn’t have the money.”

Through a connection at the First Presbyterian Church, where Mr. Nzuah attended services, he found lodging on the farm of Ms. Rocco, who was in need of a summer intern. Mr. Nzuah worked on the farm helping with hay, maintaining the barn and caring for animals.

“Pierre, within a few months, became a son,” Ms. Rocco said.

“It was one of those miracles,” Mr. Nzuah added.

Mr. Nzuah said he immediately made his intentions of giving back to his Cameroonian village.

“The first time I met Ellen, I made it clear to her that I wanted to get an education and then help kids back home,” he said.

“He really was struggling the whole time he was here, so there was no money to go home,” Ms. Rocco said. “We decided that starting an NGO would be a great way to arrive back home after almost five years, and he could give back to his village,”

The two began planning a trip to Cameroon and scheduled it for after Mr. Nzuah’s graduation from SUNY Canton, where he received his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in May 2015.

He is now working toward a master’s degree from Clarkson in electrical engineering with a focus on power systems.

Fundraising on a GoFundMe page produced around $9,000 for supplies and trip expenses. Mr. Nzuah and Ms. Rocco purchased chalk, pens and soccer balls for the schools and brought them along.

“We went back to Cameroon, to his village with the intent of identifying the elementary schools in his village that needed help,” Ms. Rocco said.

For two weeks, the pair traveled to seven elementary schools in the area and gave out 88 scholarships for primary school students to continue their education for a year, and also purchased 150 wooden desks for the children.

“The idea was to scholarship as many kids as possible,” Ms. Rocco said.

Mr. Nzuah said each of the 88 children have the opportunity to earn a scholarship each year for the remainder of their elementary school education. They also hope to double the number of scholarships this year when they return to Cameroon in early summer.

“We raise money, online mostly,” Ms. Rocco said. “It’s ongoing; we’re constantly raising money for it.”

Ms. Rocco said the NGO hopes to raise $13,500 for the next round of donations.

A donation of $20 sends one Cameroonian child to elementary school for one year, according to Ms. Rocco.