The many hats of Wilbroda Shinanda

In the corridors of Friends’ School Malava Boys, she is Madam Wilbroda Shinanda — a passionate teacher of English & Literature.

But outside the classroom, she is many things at once. Famously known as SAUTI YA WALIMU. She is Auntie Shishi, Senje, Wilbie. She is the 8GB, Big Machine – Mama County. She is a unionist, a girls’ empowerment Champion, a Human Rights Defender and a welfare warrior for teachers in Kakamega County as a KUPPET VICE CHAIR.

Wilbroda Shinanda’s journey in education is a story of dedication, resilience, and service spanning over two decades across some of the most notable schools in Western Kenya.

A former student of Shibuye Girls, Mukumu Girls, St. Anne’s Mumias and Butere Girls for her secondary education, Shinanda later joined Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology (MMUST), where she also served as a student leader — an early sign of her leadership traits.

Her teaching career has taken her through Sacred Heart Mukumu Girls, St. Martha’s Mwitoti, Shiamusinjiri Secondary, Chebwai SDA, St. Anthony Kakoyi, St. Teresa’s Isanjiro and Matete Secondary School, before her current station at Friends’ School Malava Boys.

But her most defining chapter remains St. Teresa’s Isanjiro Secondary School, a school she founded.

Appointed by the late retired Rt. Rev. Bishop Philip Sulumeti, Shinanda not only established the school from scratch but went to villages marketing it door-to-door to get students. She voluntarily served as its Deputy Principal, teacher of English/Literature, a storekeeper and also a BoM member doing whatever it took to give the institution a foothold and to give the girl-child a better platform.

“Her work at Isanjiro changed the future of many girls. She believed that educating a girl is educating a community,” said a former colleague.

Today, that passion for the girl-child lives on through her sanitary pads program that runs across Malava Sub-County. The initiative aims at ending period poverty — a silent crisis that forces many girls into transactional relationships in search of money to buy pads, often leading to early pregnancies and school dropouts.

“I have seen girls miss school for a week every month. I have seen them drop out. A packet of pads can keep a girl in school,” Shinanda says.

In trade unionism, Shinanda has carved a niche as a fearless defender of teachers. She currently serves as the Kenya Union of Post Primary Education Teachers (KUPPET) Vice Chair in charge of Welfare for Kakamega County and is the Malava Teachers FC Welfare Leader & Kakamega Teachers FC Patron.

She is also deeply involved in sports, serving as the leader of Malava Teachers Football Club and Patron of Kakamega Teachers Football Club — platforms she uses to unite teachers and advocate for their wellness.

As a unionist, her agenda is clear.

First, she is pushing for a strong review of the teachers’ Career Progression Guidelines (CPG), which she says have condemned many teachers to stagnate in the same job group for over 20 years without promotion.

“Teachers should get automatic promotions after every three years. In most developed countries, teachers are the most highly paid civil servant as because of their impact in society. Stagnation kills morale. A teacher who has served for 20 years in the same job group cannot give their best. We need a fair and humane progression system,” she argues.

Second, she is a strong advocate for the autonomy of Junior Schools, arguing that independence of JS from primary schools will lead to improved academic standards, better management and proper utilization of resources.

Nicknamed ‘Senje’ by her students and ‘8GB Mama County’ by peers for her high-energy and big-hearted nature, Shinanda represents a new breed of teachers who teach beyond the blackboard.

For her, despite the challenges in the education sector, the future is bright.

“If we invest in the girl child, support our teachers and give Junior Schools their space, Kenya’s education will be unstoppable,” she says.