Rift Valley Academy

The Rift Valley Academy is in Kijabe, central Kenya. It sits on 90 acres of the upper escarpment overlooking Kenya's Rift Valley. The campus is at an elevation of over 7,000 feet and is home to nineteen dormitories, a gym, a music building, a drama hall, two sports fields, tennis and basketball courts, a chapel, a cafeteria, and student health and counseling facilities.

The school comprises an elementary, a junior high, and a senior high school.

Christian boarding school.

We serve about 500 students representing 30 nationalities. Kenyan nationals and expatriate students are included in the student body.

Academic Support Services provide support for students with special needs in all grades (K-12). Services vary by year and staff. ESL: English is the language of instruction, and ESL support is available, especially for younger students.

Kenya.

Christian.

RVA operates on a trimester schedule, beginning in August and ending in July. Each term lasts about twelve weeks, followed by a one-month break.

Rift Valley Academy uses an international curriculum with a North American foundation. The high school program is based on an American curricular foundation and supports British IGCSE qualifications for a small number of missionary students. RVA offers both a College Prep Diploma and a General Education Diploma; the College Prep Diploma is designed to meet four-year college expectations, and many students pursue it. The high school schedule is year-round, single-track from August to July, with three terms of about 12 weeks each. Core subjects include English, Social Studies, Math, Science, and Information Technology, plus a Foreign Language, Bible, Physical Education, Fine Arts, and Life Skills, with additional term-length and enrichment courses. World Language requirements for the college prep diploma call for two levels of the same language (consecutive if possible); Advanced Placement courses are available, typically including English, Calculus AB and BC, Statistics, French, Biology, and Chemistry.

About 95% of RVA graduates directly pursue college education. Graduates in the past decade have attended Brown, Caltech, Cornell, Dartmouth, Duke, Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Stanford, St Andrews, Vanderbilt, the US Air Force Academy, Wellesley, and Yale.

Advanced Placement courses are offered, typically including English, Calculus AB and BC, Statistics, French, Biology, and Chemistry, with AP testing available on campus. AP exams carry additional cost, currently about $128 per test.

Counseling provides preventative programs for students and supports them through normal transitions and crises, and it also advises staff caring for the student body. The counseling team is dedicated to helping students thrive and to supporting families. The Health Services promote spiritual, mental, and physical wellbeing, operating an on campus clinic with 24 hour coverage and collaborating with Kijabe Hospital for broader care. The Guidance Office assists with course registration, testing, transcripts, and college planning, and the College Coordinator helps seniors navigate the application process. Peer tutoring is available to support academic and social learning, and ESL accommodations can be offered to some students, especially in the younger grades.

Academic Support Services serve students with special needs in all grades, K-12. Services vary from year to year depending on staff availability. RVA philosophy is to support students in their special needs to the best of our ability. RVA does not offer a full range of special needs services.

English is the language of instruction at RVA, but we are able to accommodate some ESL students. When possible, ESL support is offered, especially in the younger grades.

Counseling provides preventative programs, supports for transitions and crises, and advises RVA staff. Student Health Services aim to promote mental, spiritual, and physical wellbeing. The on campus health clinic is a 20 bed facility with a nurse on duty or on call 24 hours a day. The team collaborates with Kijabe Hospital to provide broader care when needed. Staff strive to help students thrive in Africa and beyond.

Rift Valley Academy has a Child Safeguarding Policy. The policy states that the safety of the child is paramount and safeguarding is a core value. The policy provides guidelines for evaluating and making decisions in situations that involve harm or possible harm to a child. If there is a safety concern, contact is via the email address childsafety@rva.org. The policy includes a commitment to respond to any abuse allegations that occurred at Rift Valley Academy and offers contact with the AIM child safety officer for confidential handling.

1. Fill out the Request More Information form. The Admissions office will send you the appropriate application information and forms. 2. Complete and submit the application form along with all supporting documentation. 3. Submit the non-refundable application processing fee. 4. Once RVA receives all required application items, we begin reviewing your child's application for admission. Students are placed on the appropriate waiting list based on the date of the completed application (all items received). Note: Applicants whose parents serve with Africa Inland Mission are given priority until April 1st. After that date, applicants whose parents serve with other mission organizations are considered. If space remains, Kenyan nationals and expatriate applicants may be invited to come for an interview and testing. These applications are reviewed in mid-June. 5. If space is available, RVA will grant provisional acceptance. Please send all enrollment forms at this time, along with the enrollment deposit. The enrollment forms and deposit must be received within 30 days of provisional acceptance for final acceptance to be granted. 6. Once all enrollment forms are received and reviewed, and the enrollment deposit is paid in full, the Admissions office will confirm the final acceptance of the applicant. The school motto is “We must be global Christians with a global vision because our God is a global God.” –John Stott. Please note: -We desire to provide a quality education for children whose parents live in remote areas of Africa, serving the Lord as missionaries, and who have no other schooling options. For these reasons, we are unable to accept children whose families reside on other continents. -All applicants must submit results of a standardized achievement test from within the last two years. -Students whose first language is not English, and who have not attended a school where the curriculum is delivered in English for at least two years, are required to submit the results of an English Proficiency test. -Math and foreign language screening tests are given to new high school students during their first day or two at RVA to ensure placement at the proper level. -New high school students who want to enroll in band and/or choir are required to audition.

The waitlist operates by placing applicants on the appropriate waiting list based on the date the completed application (all items received) is submitted. If space becomes available, provisional acceptance is granted. Enrollment forms and the enrollment deposit must be submitted within 30 days of provisional acceptance for final acceptance.