Today’s New Zealand Herald included a story on Onja! If you didn’t see it you can read it here.
Here are a few snippets from the article:
“And so the idea of a social enterprise model that involved preparing young talent in the developing world to meet outsourceable needs in developed economies began to take shape. One year after starting his corporate job, he handed in his notice to work full-time on turning his vision into a reality.
Like all social enterprises, the model needed to be sustainable. As most of the students would come from poor backgrounds with no ability to pay for their education, an innovative feature was incorporated into the business model. In exchange for receiving a two-year education, the students would agree to work for an outsourcing venture after they graduated. Profits generated by this venture would be fed back into the school to educate more students.“
From Clopedia, Onja student:
“I finally received news that I had been accepted. Then I realised I would have to leave my family and that was one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make.
But my parents told me I would never get another chance like this so I left them to continue my studies at Onja. I’m doing well … and after just seven months I’ve become a confident English speaker.”
