When the students at St. Joseph’s Hill Secondary School in Kyarusozi, Uganda were suddenly at risk of not being able to take a newly-mandated Information and Communication Technology (ICT) course due to insufficient technology, Holy Cross Mission Center, through the help of generous donors, quickly stepped in and met their need by supplying funds for 64 new computers. This upgrade in technology has made a profound impact on the school, helping students and teachers to participate at a new level as they seek to achieve academic success.

Since its founding in 1990, St. Joseph’s Hill Secondary School has continued to provide a quality education to students from neighboring villages who would not otherwise be able to afford one. The school currently serves 522 students, providing both O-level and A-level educational options. 

When the Ministry of Education recently made an ICT course mandatory for students, the school was ill-equipped to meet the new requirement. Many of their computers were old and run down, and they did not have a sufficient number of working computers to meet the needs of all the students. Rev. Fr. Balikuddembe Vincent, C.S.C, the assistant school bursar, reported, “The computers we had were old and could not support new windows and they were breaking down from time to time.” 

Thankfully, Holy Cross Mission Center quickly supplied funding for new computers, which the school was able to acquire from a local company. Fr. Vincent recalled how swiftly this aid was provided, saying, “Because of this urgent need, we approached the Holy Cross Mission Centre through the Provincial for possible assistance and help was granted immediately.” 

The increase in functioning computers has had an enormous impact throughout the school, helping the students to achieve at a higher level than before. 

Since the school now has a total of 90 computers, instructors have been able to teach entire classes of students at once, instead of breaking a class up into smaller sections to study in shifts. Not only are students able to learn at the same time, but the new technology has enabled them to participate more deeply in the instruction, and to grow their computer and research skills. Mr. Tusabe Stephen, who is the head of the department of ICT for St. Joseph’s Hill and teaches Computer Studies, told the Mission Center that since the installation of the computers, “Delivery in class has become easy, given that students follow whenever I’m teaching. On the side of students, research has been improved since we have many computers and they are connected to the internet.” 

“The student performance has improved academically; students’ basic computer skills like typing and printing have also improved; and students are [now] updated about contemporary issues,” Fr. Vincent further highlighted. 

Additionally, new computers have brought an increase in student enthusiasm for the ICT course, and for sitting for the National Computer Exam. Since the school can now accommodate more students in the computer lab, 82 students were able to take the National Computer Exam this year. This is an increase from last year, when only 57 students sat for the exam; and it marks a 100% increase from two years ago, when just 41 students took the national exam. 

“Next year we hope for the number to grow to 100 students doing computer exams at the National level,” Fr. Vincent shared. “The recently donated computers are a blessing and we are happy to have got them at the right time when we needed them most.” 

Recognizing the vital role these computers now play in the success of the students, Fr. Vincent noted that the school is committed to regular maintenance and supervision of them in order to ensure that they can serve the school for a long time, empowering many students to come. 

Published: April 23, 2025