Chernoh Jalloh

Joined ALA in 2009

I was born and raised in Daru town, Sierra Leone to Guinean parents. Although I am of Guinean descent, I spent most of my earlier years with my family in Sierra Leone but we later moved to Guinea due to the civil war in Sierra Leone.

Being raised in eastern Sierra Leone where educational opportunities are at best limited, I had no choice, but to push myself as a student. I did both my primary and junior secondary education in Daru town with my other siblings but later left for a better education in the city. I earned the best results in my school in the country’s national exams and was among the top 5 students in the BECE examination in 2008. This, I believe, earned me a place at the Africa Leadership Academy the following year. I applied to ALA because I believe its vision of transforming the African continent and I wanted to be among the change makers who would make this happen. I saw ALA as the hub of Africa’s development and a place where I can make long-lasting friends from across the continent and around the world.

I became a Bezos Scholar during my first year at ALA and in 2010, I was selected to represent ALA at the Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado, USA. I also joined the ALA scientific research class for the first time and made several presentations to the school on ‘Space and Mars Exploration’. During my time at ALA, I was also the CEO of African Football Academy (AFA), a community service project based in Swartkop. Its mission is to transform African Football by empowering and supporting young children through football and life skill programs starting at the grass-root level.

I am attending Bennington College in Bennington, VT. In ten years, I see myself working in one of Africa’s leading Genetic Engineering companies. I will be developing drugs to cure diseases such as Malaria, Cholera, and HIV/Aids which are claiming the lives of millions of Africans. It doesn’t matter where I will be, all that matters is that I will be on the run in making Africa the world’s greatest success story ever.