Project Back to School

The program was founded in 2016 by Stella Young during her junior year of high school, originally as a community outreach project at a semester school focused on environmental stewardship. Asked to develop a program to benefit her community, she chose her global community, setting out to support 20 elementary and secondary students by raising money for tuition, school supplies, and uniforms. She ran the program with her father, On the Ground board member Timothy Young, until her sophomore year of college, at which point On the Ground took it on and formally launched Project Back to School.

In the DRC, each student must cover the cost of tuition, supplies, and a uniform. For many families these costs are too high, and parents are forced to prioritize one child over the others — often sending sons to school while daughters stay home to support the household. Since 2016, On the Ground has supported 372 students through the program.

In 2025 we funded 43 students — the most yet, and all orphans — through a full school year. These children have lost their parents to conflict, natural disaster, or health conditions that better healthcare access would likely have treated. $110 covers one child for a complete school year: tuition, uniform, books, and supplies.

Access to education is also a matter of safety. There is ongoing conflict in the DRC, and when children are not in school many are recruited as child soldiers, drawn by wages, power, and the hope of supporting their families.