A Message From Our Founders
Paul Skidmore, CEO
After 10 incredible years at the helm, I've decided now is the right time to step back from the day-to-day management of Rising Academies. Over the summer, I'll be transitioning to a part-time Executive Chairman role, and handing over most of my operational responsibilities to a new CEO: my co-founder Steph Dobrowolski.
The big driver for me is personal. My family, after many happy years in Ghana, is ready to relocate back to the UK. Ahead of that move, this feels like a good moment to make a change in my role too.
I'm so proud of what we've accomplished at Rising over the last decade. What began as an idea for a small network of schools in Freetown now encompasses operations in four countries, working with more than 800 schools and more than 250,000 students. Along the way we’ve navigated two global health pandemics, natural disasters, political tensions, and economic and currency crises. Through all of that, we’ve led with our values, put learning first, held ourselves accountable, become certified as a B Corp, and lived up to our commitment that “however well we do, we always strive to do better”.
I’m also hugely excited about the opportunities that now lie in front of us, especially in our government partnerships and edtech business. Our recent Rising@10 celebrations in Freetown, and our shortlisting for the World's Best Schools Prizes, perfectly encapsulated this twin sense of pride in our past and optimism about our future.
But frankly I wouldn't feel comfortable making this transition if I wasn’t handing the reins to Steph, who will formally take over as CEO from 1st September. Steph has worked shoulder-to-shoulder with me from the very beginning to turn Rising from the smallest inkling of an idea to the high-impact, constantly innovating, multi-country, multi-channel, tech-enabled organization it is today.
I am looking forward to supporting Steph and Rising in my new role and while this very much ISN'T goodbye, I want to extend a huge thank you to all of you for your support on this incredible journey. We really couldn’t have done it without you.
With tremendous gratitude and best wishes.
Paul
Stephanie Dobrowolski, Chief Impact Officer
I am thrilled and humbled to be continuing my journey with Rising Academy Network in the capacity of CEO.
Paul Skidmore and I first met in 2013. I had recently finished my PhD and was trying to decide my next steps. Paul’s vision for change through quality education was incredibly compelling. We eventually decided to give this a shot. When I moved to Freetown in October 2013, “this” was starting a network of high quality junior secondary schools in Sierra Leone.
Even with big ambitions, we never could have dreamt what “this” would become. What started as a home-based program for 25 students during Ebola has grown into a network of over 800 schools and 250,000 students across Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana and Rwanda. Our team has grown from our first cohort of 8 incredibly resilient and dedicated teachers, to a team of over 700 brilliant colleagues who are truly passionate about changing education for the better.
As we celebrate 10 years of Rising, I am so grateful to every Rising team member who, through unbelievable hard work and grit, has built the foundation for the extraordinary things that we will achieve in our next 10 years. I am grateful to Paul for starting this journey together, for his clarity of vision and integrity as a leader. It has been a true privilege to lead and learn alongside Paul, and I look forward to his continued support in his new capacity as Executive Chairman.
I am committed to continuing to foster a culture of transparency, humility and learning. I’m excited to keep working and learning alongside our brilliant team and network of partners, to unlock even greater change, for even more schools. Together, our potential for long-term, meaningful impact is vast, and I couldn’t be more thrilled than to continue this journey.
Let’s keep Rising.
Steph
