Social Entrepreneurship, from Street to School - A Conversation with Tosin Olowoyeye-Taiwo
Oluwatosin Olowoyeye-Taiwo is an activist and social entrepreneur campaigning for equity and access to education for at-risk children in Nigeria. She founded her organisation Street to School Initiative in 2009 to sponsor out-of-school children back to school. Through her educational sponsorship programs and school support scheme, Tosin has been able to support more than 20,000 vulnerable pupils into schools. In 2015, she established a tuition-free school in Alimosho, strictly for out-of-school children in Nigeria.
She has also supported children's entries into national examinations such as IGCSEs, A-levels, West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination, Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.
Tosin is a 2013 recipient of the United States Consul General Award, and a 2014 alumnus of the US government-sponsored International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP). In 2017, Tosin received the Yemisi-Ransome Kuti Leadership Award.
At the Street to School Centre, children are taught, mentored & provided learning materials & free school meals, this is to boost school attendance and improve learning outcomes. In 5 years of establishment, 78 children have transitioned into high school, with 198 children currently enrolled and in various classes. Street to School Initiative is being supported by terrific individuals, and corporations such as Stanbic IBTC Bank, United Parcel Service, the Embassy of Japan in Nigeria, and the US Embassy. Tosin is a graduate of Computer Science from the University of Lagos and Social Sector Management from Pan-Atlantic University.
Social Links
Twitter: @Street2SchoolNG
LinkedIn: @Oluwatosin-Olowoyeye-Taiwo
Facebook: @Street2SchoolNG
