What Riley Orton Foundation Org does

Riley Orton Foundation Org (ROF) is a Kenyan nonprofit founded in 2010 by David Omondi, headquartered in Kisumu, Nyanza Province, with a 12-person team (7 core members) operating primarily in rural Western Kenya. The organization delivers holistic STEM and AI education to marginalized rural girls, out-of-school youth, and teachers across Kisumu, Siaya, Kakamega, Busia, and Homa Bay counties. Its flagship facilities are the Akili STEMarts Academy in rural Obambo (STEAM learning hub) and the SARE Designs Vocational Education and Training Center (garment making and digital literacy), supported by legacy programs including Akili Library and Akili School, plus the annual Climate Solutions Challenge.

The technology stack is built around hands-on STEM/AI education using commodity accessible tools: Scratch programming, Arduino and Raspberry Pi Pico microcontrollers, robotics platforms (VEX, Botley, Edison), 3D printing, and IoT applications. ROF trains teachers on generative AI for lesson planning, text-to-speech for accessibility, and smart exam analysis for data-driven instruction. The underlying curriculum is proprietary and tailored to rural Kenyan contexts, combining STEM with climate solutions, HIV/AIDS awareness, menstrual health, and life skills. Recent foundational infrastructure investments include a solar energy system installed at Akili STEMarts Academy through the EDP A2E Fund grant.

ROF operates as a donation-funded nonprofit with a community-led go-to-market model. Revenue streams include individual student sponsorships ($250/year or $20/month recurring), corporate and foundation grants (EDP A2E Fund, NAAEE, Sunflower Foundation, Segal Family Foundation, Tailored For Education), micro-finance grants to women ($50-$100), and individual donations processed through GlobalGiving and US fiscal sponsor Omprakash. The 2024 Global E-STEM Award from Pratt & Whitney and NAAEE recognized the organization's Climate Solutions project. Distribution is direct through the Akili STEMarts Academy, partner school STEM clubs, holiday STEM camps, vocational training centers, and a school uniform distribution program serving 1,097 students in 2025.

Name

Riley Orton Foundation Org

Legal name

Riley Orton Foundation

Website

https://rileyortonfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Riley Orton Foundation Org is a Kenyan nonprofit that delivers STEM and AI education, vocational training, and material support to marginalized rural girls and youth in Western Kenya through its flagship Akili STEMarts Academy in Kisumu.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Education Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Services (611), Educational Services (61), All Other Schools and Instruction (61169), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

STEAM-Focused Early Learning Academies (EDACADAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Inquiry/Project-Based Early Learning Academies (EDACADAF), In-Service Professional Development (Workshops/Institutes/Short Courses) (EDACAIAB), Advanced Project-Based Learning & Portfolio Mentoring (STEM/arts portfolios, maker projects) (EDANAKAI), Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

Keywords

• STEM education programs
• Girls education nonprofit
• Rural education Kenya
• Scholarship programs
• Vocational training

Headquarters

HQ city

Kisumu

HQ country

Kenya

HQ region

Africa

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations and Sponsorships: Individual donors sponsor marginalized rural girls for high school education and leadership development. Annual cost is $250 per student or $20 monthly recurring.
2. Corporate and Foundation Grants: Grants from corporate partners (EDP A2E Fund), foundations (NAAEE Global E-STEM Awards, Sunflower Foundation, Segal Family Foundation), and NGOs to fund STEM education programs, scholarships, and vocational training.
3. Women Micro-Finance Fund: Business skills training and mentorship with micro-loans and grants of $50-$100 given to women in small-scale businesses to boost economic empowerment.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Riley Orton Foundation Org is a Kenyan nonprofit that delivers STEM-focused education and empowerment programs for marginalized rural girls. It operates the Akili STEMarts Academy and provides scholarships, vocational training, and school uniform distribution. Curriculum emphasizes hands-on learning using Arduino, Raspberry Pi, Scratch, and AI tools to build practical technology skills.

Product overview

Riley Orton Foundation Org operates as a non-profit educational organization offering a portfolio of programs focused on STEM education, material support, and economic empowerment for marginalized rural communities in Kenya. The core offering is the Akili STEMarts Academy, a STEAM learning hub that provides hands-on training in coding, robotics, AI, and IoT. Supporting programs include Material Support & Scholarships (uniforms, bicycles, sanitary products, scholarships), Vocational Training & Economic Empowerment (digital literacy, fashion design), and the Climate Solutions Challenge annual competition. The organization also maintains legacy programs including Akili Library and Akili School. Together, these programs form an integrated approach to breaking barriers in STEM education for girls and underserved youth in rural Kenya.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Akili STEMarts Academy: Flagship STEAM learning hub providing students and teachers from underserved rural schools access to STEM education resources, AI tools, robotics, and hands-on training in digital storytelling, coding, robotics, AI, IoT, engineering, and climate entrepreneurship.
• Akili STEMarts Academy & Vocational Education Center
• Dignity & Access School Uniform Initiative
• Climate Solutions Challenge

Products and services

• Akili STEMarts Academy

Quantifiable outcome

• Thousands of rural girls and young women impacted through holistic education approach
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Mercury Phoenix Trust UKcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to integrate HIV/AIDS awareness into STEM programs. Visits marginalized rural schools such as Osiri Secondary and Oyiengo Primary, equipping adolescents with vital knowledge about prevention, stigma reduction, and available care.
• African Maths Initiative (AMI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with AMI to organize Creative Coding with Scratch workshop for teachers, bringing together 18 educators to strengthen digital instruction skills and implement competency-based education curriculum.
• Futures InfinitecoreTechnology or IntegrationPartnership to train teachers in robotics using Raspberry Pi. Over 160 teachers trained in September 2025 across Kisumu and Bungoma counties. Judges from Future Infinities participated in August 2025 STEM camp showcase.
• Raspberry Pi FoundationcoreTechnology or IntegrationProvides free lesson plans and resources for teachers to continue teaching robotics and coding. Raspberry Pi Pico microcontrollers used for teacher training in robotics and physical computing.
• FABLAB WINAMminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal partner organization contributing expertise to November 2024 STEM Mentorship and Life Skills camp, bringing together 80 students from over 20 educational institutions.
• STEAM INTERACTIVEminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization contributing to November 2024 STEM camp with expertise in digital literacy and programming activities.
• HEDSOminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization contributing to November 2024 STEM Mentorship and Life Skills camp focused on health awareness and educational engagement.
• Grades of GreenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSARE Designs Vocational Education and Training Center participates in Grades of Green's RISE Climate Solutions Challenge through 'Trash to Cash' program that repurposes textile waste into fashionable accessories.
• Spur AfrikaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartner at SARE Designs graduation ceremony representing collective effort to empower young women.
• Tailored For EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization providing school uniforms to students in need. Co-founders Megan and Jessica visited ROF premises to meet local tailors and witness uniform distribution program impact at partner schools.
• GlobalGivingcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNonprofit funding platform connecting ROF to donors worldwide. Facilitates regular fundraising campaigns with matching opportunities; funds raised are regularly sent to ROF account in Kenya.
• Amplify GirlsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConsortium of grassroots organizations empowering adolescent girls in eastern Africa, providing networking and resource-sharing opportunities.
• Centre for the Study of AdolescenceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner at SARE Designs graduation ceremony focused on adolescent health and development programs.
• Ajira DigitalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner at graduation ceremony providing digital entrepreneurship and online job platform opportunities for vocational training graduates.
• Books Are Power OrgminorGTM or Marketing PartnerListed as partner organization supporting ROF's educational mission.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Camfed (Campaign for Female Education): International nonprofit supporting girls' education across sub-Saharan Africa through scholarships, mentorship, and leadership development. Comparable because Camfed addresses similar barriers to girls' education (uniforms, fees, mentorship) but at much larger scale across multiple countries.
• Andela: Africa-focused tech talent company training software engineers across the continent. Comparable mission of building African STEM talent capacity, though operating as a for-profit employer model rather than a grassroots education nonprofit.
• African Leadership University (ALU): Pan-African higher-education institution developing leadership and STEM talent across the continent. Comparable in the African STEM talent pipeline mission, though serving a much later life stage (tertiary) and at vastly larger scale.
• Room to Read: Global nonprofit focused on literacy and girls' education in low-income communities. Comparable in the girls' education and material support space, though ROF adds a STEM/STEAM specialization that Room to Read does not emphasize.
• Barefoot College: International nonprofit training rural women from developing countries in solar engineering and other skills. Directly comparable to ROF's Climate Solutions Challenge and women micro-finance approach, with a similar rural-women-empowerment-through-technology thesis at global scale.

Direct peers

• Educate!: Uganda- and Rwanda-headquartered nonprofit equipping youth with skills, mentorship, and entrepreneurship training. Comparable target demographic (African youth) and adjacent focus on skills/economic empowerment though more explicitly entrepreneurship-led.
• Zimba Women: Ugandan social enterprise providing tech and business skills training to women. Comparable as a sub-Saharan African women's skills-and-economic-empowerment organization with a training-plus-micro-enterprise model similar to ROF's SARE Designs + micro-finance offering.
• African Maths Initiative (AMI): Kenya-based nonprofit running creative coding and math workshops with teachers and students in rural Kenya. Direct comparable because ROF explicitly partners with AMI for Creative Coding with Scratch workshops for educators in the same geography and target population.
• Solar Sister: Africa-based nonprofit empowering women through clean energy entrepreneurship. Comparable in the women economic empowerment and clean energy space that intersects with ROF's Climate Solutions Challenge and women micro-finance fund.

Regional players

• Moringa School: Kenya-based tech training academy preparing African youth for software careers. Comparable as a Kenyan STEM/skills training organization targeting similar demographic, though operating as a fee-based for-profit rather than nonprofit.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/akiligirls

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Riley Orton Foundation Org