Homa Bay Man Who Repeated Classes Multiple Times Set to Graduate from University Abroad
- He repeated multiple classes, dropped out of school, and once returned to primary school after starting high school—yet Nathaniel Odongo Owino never gave up
- From losing his mother at a young age to battling poverty and rejection, his story is a powerful testament to grit
- Today, he stands proud, set to graduate from a university in Norway, proving that perseverance beats circumstance
In a world where many give up at the first sign of adversity, Nathaniel Odongo Owino’s story stands out as a powerful testimony to perseverance, resilience, and the unbreakable human spirit.
Source: UGC
Born in 1993, Nathaniel told TUKO.co.ke that his journey through education has been anything but linear.
From repeating classes multiple times to struggling with family turmoil, his academic path reads more like a battle report than a typical curriculum vitae.
Yet today, he stands on the brink of graduating from a university in Norway, an extraordinary leap from his humble beginnings in rural Kenya.
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A childhood marked by loss and struggle
Nathaniel’s educational journey began at Sony Primary School in 1999, the same year he lost his mother. Her death marked a major turning point.
Later that year, his family relocated to the village under the care of his grandmother.
His father remarried shortly after, introducing a wave of hardship into the already fragile family dynamic.
Nathaniel was in and out of class, often staying home due to the unstable family dynamics, which affected him psychologically.
How many times did Nathaniel Odongo repeat?
Despite the interruptions, he pushed on, starting Class 1 in 2000, then progressing slowly, sometimes repeating years.
Class 3 stretched across two years (2002–2003), Class 4 (2004–2005), Class 5 (2006–2007), and so on until he finally sat for his KCPE in 2010, scoring 267 marks.
His low marks, compounded by his father’s refusal to fund high school due to his poor performance, seemed like the final nail in the coffin.
The directive from home was clear: repeat Class 8. Nathaniel, however, refused.
Rewinding to move forward
In 2011, he joined Ongalo Mixed Secondary School as a Form One student. But once again, finances became a roadblock.
By 2012, with his education in limbo and his father unable to support both him and his elder sister, then in Form Three, Nathaniel made the painful decision to drop out.
"Rather than sit idle at home, I made a counterintuitive move by going back to primary school to rejoin Grade 7," he shared.
His goal was clear—give his sister a chance to complete her education while buying time and avoiding the pressure of being a Class 8 candidate without a solid support system.
Source: UGC
How Nathaniel Odongo joined MMUST
This move paid off. He excelled in his studies and won a scholarship that enabled him to attend Orero Boys High School.
There, he performed well enough to secure admission at Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology (MMUST), where he joined with nothing but hope in his heart.
With help from the constituency bursary fund, he found his footing and quickly rose through the ranks, becoming a student leader in his first year.
However, leadership came with consequences.
Why Nathaniel Odongo was suspended from MMUST
In his second year, he became a central figure in a student-led protest challenging an oppressive fee policy.
"My bold stand against the administration’s mandatory two-week clearance requirement led to a suspension that cost me two academic years," he recounted.
But where doors closed, others opened.
During his suspension, Nathaniel’s unrelenting determination caught the attention of a benefactor, and he was awarded a scholarship by the Kenya Self-Help Project (KSHP) to study in Norway.
Nathaniel Odongo's message of hope
From a tiny village in Kenya to the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), his journey symbolises hope for every child who has ever been told they’re not good enough.
"I usually use my life as proof that one's beginning does not define their destiny," he reiterated.
In a world where dropping out is often the end of the road, he chose to circle back, recalibrate, and push forward.
Ais is not just a story of personal victory but a beacon of hope for others still trapped in the cycle of poverty, delayed education, and despair.
His message?
“It doesn't matter how many times you fall—what counts is how many times you rise and keep moving.”
And rise he did.
Nathaniel clears fees for stranded students
Having experienced what missing school is, Nathaniel made a promise to himself to always help needy cases.
In this regard, he recently paid fees for two students whose grandmother had offered six chickens to clear the KSh 131,920 balance.
He also went a step further and shopped for the family, ensuring that the students could resume their studies without worrying.
Proofreading by Jackson Otukho, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
