Sr. Mary Gladyce Kachope receiving the award
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RUKUNGIRI- It was a pomp, glamour and sadness at Immaculate Heart  Girls School Nyakibale on Thursday, January 16, 2024 as the School community bid farewell to the outgoing continental Headteacher, Sr. Mary GladyceKachope after 19 years of service.

In a function that was attended by the Chairmen Board Of Governors and PTA respectively with their committee members, Principal Municipal Education Officer, Students’ representatives and members of the staff, Sr. Kachope handed over the tools of power to Sr. Sabina Tumusiime, who is been her deputy.

Kachope now heads to Mbarara District where she is slated to take on the leadership of Boni Concillii Girls’ School. 

In her handover speech, Sr. Kachope was grateful to the almighty who has helped her in ensuring progress not only in academics but enrollment, discipline and welfare as well as a number of remarkable achievements in infrastructure development, co-curricular activities and community engagement.

With the school motto “Aim Higher, Sky is the Limit”, the Outgoing Headmistress was grateful that since taking over office in 2006, the School’s enrolment has progressively grown from 912 to 2,684 in 2024, so is the performance.

Kachope was also proud to announce that since her take over in 2006, the increasing numbers of learners demanded an increment in the staff both teaching, non-teaching and support staff from 44 to 98 now, 17 to 35 and 24 to 68 respectively. 

Founded with 38 students on March 8, 1969 a date that coincides with International Women’s Day, demystifying the various gender biases has been key to the foundation.

The incoming Headteacher, Sr. Sabina Tumusiime expressed gratitude to the Board of Governors, Foundation body and the stakeholders for trusting her with role, promising to perform with due diligence in ensuring that the progressive graph in performance and enrollment is maintained.

Sr. Sabina hailed Sr. Kachope for grooming her to this level, expressing her ability to ensure continuity of the school given the time she has served under the latter’s guidance.

The Rukungiri Municipal Education Office, Mr. Alfred Katabazi Mutuza was grateful to Sr. Kachope for handing over the leadership roles at Immaculate Heart Girls School after 19 years of success.

Katabazi implored the parents, students and other stakeholders to support Sr. Sabina, and expressed confidence in her since she has worked with Sr. Kachope for some good time.

The Superior General of the Institute of Our Lady of Good Counsel applauded Sr. Kachope for coming to the climax of her stay at Immaculate Heart Girls Schools, leaving a remarkable trait of success and urged the incoming Headteacher to aim at even achieving more than what has been achieved by the outgoing Kachope.

The Superior General added that through the Bishop of Kabale Diocese, Rt. Rev. Callist Rubaramira, the Institute has allocated other sisters to take on numerous roles in different Schools across the diocese and so is Immaculate Heart.

WHO IS SR. GLADYCE KACHOPE?

Born i to the late Mr and Mrs Daudi Kachope Muntukwonka Achaali of Mahamba village in of  Kabarole District, Sr Kachope holds a Master’s in Education Administration from Makeree University. For primary education, she went to Kiburarar Primary School in Kabarole District and Immaculate Heart Girls’ School for all her secondary education after which she joined Makerere University to do her first degree in Education with a bias in History and CRE

“All my life, I was very interested in education, and as a religious nun, part of our mission is to take care of the lowly and the disadvantaged, and education meets that goal. However, as an individual, I loved teaching and I still do,” she notes.

While at university, Sr Kachope was angered by other students’ misconception about her former school who regarded it as a village school and only had high regard for city schools and those in big towns such as Mbarara despite the good performance they had at Immaculate Hearts Girls School.

As such, she longed for a chance to demystify the fallacy and show the country that her school was even better than those highly regarded. She was however first appointed to teach at Maryhill High School in Mbarara District where she rose to the rank of deputy head teacher before her appointment to Immaculate Heart.

At Immaculate Heart, she had to devise means to make her dreams come true both as a teacher, an old girl and an administrator.

“One of my strategies was to closely work with students, to understand their problems. That is better than dictating what you want as the burden is less when you work as a team.

SR. KACHOPE EMERGES BEST HEADTEACHER IN AFRICA

In 2019, Uganda’s Sister Gladyce Kachope of Immaculate Heart Girls Rukungiri, was one of three winners of the first Continental Teacher Prize. Kachope, Eric Ademba of Kenya and Augusta Lartey-Young from Ghana each won a prize of $10,000 for secondary school teachers.

The African Union (AU) hosted the inaugural award ceremony for the first Continental Teacher Prize established as a means for demonstrating respect for teachers and the teaching profession, by encouraging and celebrating the committed teachers in Africa.

“The Prize raises the status of teaching, facilitates sharing of best practices in teacher excellence, and inspires the best possible candidates to join the teaching profession. Furthermore, the AU Teacher Prize is meant to serve as a catalyst for similar programmes at regional and national levels,” the AU said in a statement.

“The Teacher Prize is an important and valuable instrument that contributes to the success of Agenda 2063 and the Continental Education Strategy for Africa (CESA).”

The continental strategy CESA aims to promote teaching as a first choice profession at all levels; celebrate and encourage outstanding teachers; enhance visibility and status of the Teacher in Africa at all levels – Preprimary, Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary including TVET

The event, facilitated by outgoing Head of the Education Division, Dr Beatrice Khamati Njenga, was attended by Dr. Yumiko Yokozeki, Director of UNESCO Institute for Capacity Building in Africa; and Ambassador Ranieri Sabatucci, European Union Head of Delegation to the African Union, as well as Ambassadors and officials from the AUC Permanent Representatives’ Committee (PRC), senior officials from Member States, RECs, Universities, education development agencies; as well as Media and other partner organizations.

VOICES

DEPUTY SPEAKER THOMAS TAYEBWA BANGIRANA

Some few years ago, this was like any other school. Today it is like a five-star hotel, studying from here is a privilege, there is no way a person should fail if they are studying from here. 

The schools we attended have no alumni, those who went there do not want to be associated with them, but now everyone who came here wants to be mentioned. In our daily work, we find all the people who came through here employable because they are humble and dedicated. Sr. Kachope, keep the candle burning.

Ms Betty Muzanira- Former Woman MP Rukungiri District Board Member Immaculate Heart

I have worked with Sister for many years and she is a force to reckon. A head mistress of her character is rare because she mixes with parents, teachers and students easily and this has never been a character of the nuns I know. Much of what you see here, including improved students’ performance is because of her character. She deserves many more accolades.

Mr Charles Makuru- Mayor Rukungiri Municipality

She has given us, as a municipality a facelife and you will not get many women who think of building like she does. She is like an ant and while many think the municipality has developed but it is just one institution.