Since launching operations in Sierra Leone in 2017, Edify Sierra Leone, which operates under the motto “Flourishing Godly Nations,” has been credited by heads of beneficiary schools with providing transformative capacity-building support that is reshaping how Christian schools operate, teach, and sustain themselves. In an exclusive round of interviews, head teachers, proprietors, and principals from Edify partner schools stated that the organisation’s programs have improved spiritual formation, administrative and financial systems, broadened learning through technology, and assisted schools in becoming more sustainable and accountable.
Edify’s initial focus was on private schools like Beacon High, Agape Pre/Primary, Blossom, Nenneh, and Dunnet, among others. According to school leaders, the organisation’s central spiritual message — “Going Deeper in Christ” — is more than a slogan; it is a guiding philosophy. For them, going deeper entails a lifelong commitment to spiritual growth, surrender, and intentionally cultivating a closer relationship with Jesus. That spiritual foundation, they claim, fuels the larger mission of incorporating Christian faith into all aspects of school life.
Beyond the spiritual emphasis, Edify’s programming is clearly practical and multifaceted. Interviewees described a three-pronged approach that included transformational training, education technology support, and school development loans. Each strand is intended to reinforce the others: sound spiritual formation supports ethical leadership, technology enhances classroom learning, and responsible financing enables schools to grow and stabilize operations.
Education technology is a primary focus. Edify provides tools and training to help schools integrate digital learning into their classrooms, increasing student engagement and preparing students for a rapidly changing global environment. Partner schools report that technology support has enhanced lessons, improved educational outcomes, and made learning more inclusive and future-ready.
Edify also hosts a National Proprietors’ Conference, which brings together business owners, educators, and stakeholders to promote Christian-centered education. The conference focuses on incorporating biblical teaching and faith-based principles into curricula and school governance, while also providing networking opportunities, workshops, and spiritual activities such as worship and prayer. Participants described the conference as an important forum for discussing spiritual leadership and practical approaches to running faith-based institutions.
The Champion School Proprietors program, a flagship initiative, helps schools provide a balanced education that nurtures students’ minds, bodies, and spirits. The program prioritizes Christ-centered pedagogy, character development, and service, with the goal of producing graduates who excel academically while leading with integrity and demonstrating Christian values.
Financial sustainability is another key component of Edify’s support. Edify collaborates with A Call to Business (ACTB) to provide school-specific financial management and business practices training. These sessions teach administrators and financial teams how to develop strong management systems, diversify revenue streams, and make sound financial decisions that are consistent with their Christian mission. School leaders highlighted specific trainings such as “How to Run a Business” and “Government Requirements to Manage a School,” both of which were designed to prepare school leaders for competitive and regulated environments.
To ensure that schools can access capital responsibly, Edify runs a school loan program with strict eligibility requirements. Loans are made available to creditworthy schools that meet standards in a variety of areas, including leadership and financial practices, teaching quality, and spirituality. Edify assesses schools against a set of benchmarks divided into four categories: Introduction, Client, Core, and Champion, with criteria such as documentation, student enrollment, regular devotions, promotion of God’s word, staff-management relationships, government compliance, academic performance, and long-term viability.
The organization also provides Biblical Integration Trainings to educators who want to incorporate a Christian worldview into their curricula and pedagogy. These workshops teach teachers and leaders how to incorporate Christian beliefs and values not only into their content but also into their teaching methods and interactions with students. The goal is to ensure that both what and how students are taught promotes spiritual formation in addition to academic learning.
Edify’s partner network is managed by the National Edify Partner Schools Association (NEPSA). According to school administrators, NEPSA’s collaborative model improves teaching, promotes spiritual growth, and fosters a supportive community. Members work together to better integrate faith and learning, engage parents, serve communities, and prepare students for Christian-based leadership. Leaders added that the core schools program assists proprietors in balancing the demands of running a school as a business while upholding integrity, stewardship, and ethical leadership.
Heads of schools reported tangible outcomes from capacity-building initiatives. They stated that training sessions motivated them to implement administrative reforms such as systematic documentation of school information using Excel and other applications, which resulted in improved record-keeping and operational efficiency. Many schools now pay taxes to the National Revenue Authority and make staff contributions to the National Social Security and Insurance Trust (NASSIT), in addition to fulfilling obligations to the Freetown City Council and other regulatory bodies. School fees are increasingly collected directly through banks, which reduces cash handling and increases transparency.
The improvements have resulted in improved performance in a variety of areas, including academics, sports, choral competitions, Bible quizzes, preaching, debating, and other extracurricular activities. School leaders credited Edify’s emphasis on faith, management, and pedagogy with fostering environments in which students can thrive intellectually, spiritually, and socially.
Edify also provides resources at the conclusion of each retreat, workshop, and seminar, allowing schools to continue implementing best practices long after the event has ended. The classification and benchmarking system encourages schools to advance through the levels and adopt higher standards of leadership, financial management, and Christ-like behavior.
Finally, school leaders emphasized that capacity-building programs have resulted in long-term change. Whereas schools used to operate informally and inconsistently, many now use modern administrative systems, adhere to government regulations, and foster an intentional spiritual culture. The training has helped them prepare students to not only contribute to their communities and nation, but also to have an impact on the rest of the world, all while cultivating faithfulness and godly character.
As Edify Sierra Leone expands its reach, testimony from beneficiary schools suggests that the organization’s holistic model, which combines spiritual formation, educational technology, financial training, and responsible lending, is driving long-term improvements in Christian education in the country.
