A Little Teaser...

A beautiful film produced by Deborah Santana (beautiful philanthropist wife of that Carlos guy) about the girls I will be working with... in one week!

What I'm Doing

In partnership with Outside The Lens, I will be teaching participatory photography to the students of Daraja Academy. Outside the Lens is a San Diego-based youth media literacy program dedicated to enriching and celebrating the visions and voices of children. Their (our) mission is to engage, educate and empower youth on issues affecting the world today through photography and multi-media projects. My kind of people.

Participatory photography, my weapon of choice, refers to photos taken by groups who would traditionally be the subjects of other people’s pictures. It enables them to record and reflect their own strengths and concerns, and can provide training in photography and media skills. Usually implemented in conjunction with creative writing, it is a tool of empowerment and agency.

Participatory photography projects at Daraja will touch on themes of the individual and society (Here I Am), self and identity (Pieces of Me), water and conservation issues (Water In Focus), and world cultures and perspectives (Picture Me, Picture You). Armed with digital cameras and a laptop, I will be teaching photography and creative writing alongside Daraja instructors. I will assist students in creating a body of work that will be shown both in the United States and Kenya, sharing the visions of economically disadvantaged young women as they prepare to make their mark on the world. I look forward to learning their unique personal stories, and I look forward to providing them a vehicle to share their stories with you.

If you’re interested in supporting this project, click here. Outside The Lens is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, meaning all donations go directly toward bringing participatory photography to Daraja Academy, and are fully tax-deductible.

Thank you for reading, thank you for sharing this with your friends, and thanks for supporting these tremendous young women.

Who Am I?

 Deborah Elaine Spindelman, but don't call me that unless I'm in big trouble. 

Photographer, mentor, advocate, sister. I’m a nonprofit professional and the proud owner of three custom front-zip wetsuits, one of which is gold. I am fascinated with the many ways of being human in our world, and this fascination is taking me now to Kenya.

I graduated magna cum laude from Cal State University, Long Beach in 2005, where I majored in Sociocultural Anthropology and minored in Women’s Studies.  As an undergraduate, I performed ethnographic research with members of Costa Rica’s indigenous Cavecar and Bribri communities , and boosted CSULB’s surf team to win their first NSSA National Championships. Following graduation, I returned to my semi-native San Diego to mentor adolescent girls through youth mentorship startup Club Xcite. Promoted to Program Director, I launched a partnership with San Diego Youth Services to provide high-end private mentoring to low income youth at risk. 

Having joined the board of directors at Community Coaching Center, I was subsequently hired as their Community Inclusion Coordinator to develop partnerships with state and local policymakers, autism researchers, area nonprofits, volunteer organizations, and civic clubs on behalf of community inclusion programming for youth with autism. During this time, I was selected for fellowship to the New Leaders Council, a nationwide incubator and hands-on training program for emerging political and social entrepreneurs.I stepped down from CCC recently to focus on projects like this one, and to prepare to return to grad school in pursuit of a Masters in Public Policy with a focus on international NGOs and sustainable development policy.

Photo: New Leaders Council

I currently provide advocacy and development support to the International Girls Skateboarding Association, Shakti Rising, and Community Coaching Center. When not elbow-deep in that flavor of fun, I can be found longboarding at Cardiff Reef, playing dress up, and dancing the Robot poorly.

Photo: Jay Reilly

This is going to be a blast! Come join me.

Where I'm Headed

Image Courtesy Daraja Academy

Daraja Academy is the first free, all-girls secondary school in East Africa. Focusing on Form 1-4, (the U.S. equivalent of 9th to 12th grade), it serves underprivileged girls from the slums outside of Nairobi, from the Laikipia District (rural region near Daraja Academy), and from the drought-stricken northern tribes whose traditional pastoral livelihood often precludes youth from educational opportunities. 

The mission of the Daraja Academy is to cultivate a community of individuals with a sense of cultural awareness, social conscience, and environmental responsibility, all while instilling talents that will enable them to open doors to a global society. 

Utilizing the KCSE standards, Daraja’s curriculum entwines a specialized curriculum focused on the occupational interests of its students. Major components of the school include a cyber international classroom, a school garden, and farm. 

As a boarding school, they are able to educate the whole student by providing basic necessities (food, shelter, clothing, proper healthcare, support, electricity) as well as technology, access to humanities and the arts, vocational training, and liberal studies.

The staff at Daraja Academy are truly educating the future of Africa- and I’m honored to get to be a part of it. For more information about the school, check out daraja-academy.org. For the school’s official blog with great updates and images of their education in and out of the classroom, check out daraja-academy.org/blog