Harry Lee is the Executive Director of the Abaarso Network. Prior to stepping into that role, Harry was the Founder and Executive Director of Kaabe Schools, a system of Montessori-inspired K-12 schools in Somaliland under the Abaarso Network umbrella. Harry earned a Master’s in Education from Harvard University and Bachelor’s Degrees in Foreign Affairs and Psychology from the University of Virginia. While at Harvard, Harry was a graduate-level Teaching Fellow for Professor Tina Grotzer.
Harry first came to Somaliland in 2010 to help build Abaarso School, serving in numerous roles, including math teacher, Dean of Boys, basketball coach, and the school’s first Assistant Headmaster. In 2013, after the inaugural graduating class, Harry returned to the United States to grow the organization’s nonprofit infrastructure. He then produced and directed a passion project documentary about five Abaarso students pursuing their dreams of world class higher education which premiered at the Woodstock Film Festival in New York.
Harry was born in Kaduna, Nigeria; lived in Cairo, Egypt as a child; and has spent eight years in Somaliland as part of Abaarso Network. He has also lived in Alaska, Australia, and Washington state.
Nimco Ahmed Ismail is a member of the first graduating class of Abaarso School in 2013. After graduating from Oberlin College with a degree in Politics in 2017, she helped found Barwaaqo, an all-women’s university under the Abaarso Network umbrella. in 2019, she left Barwaaqo University to pursue a law degree at the University of Stirling’s Law School in Scotland and then worked at the Somaliland Ministry of Planning and National Development as part of the team preparing the third National Development Plan. Nimco is the first Abaarso School alum to serve in the organization’s senior management.
Jin has lived in East Africa for the majority of his life, in Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Kenya. He graduated from Cornell University with a BS in International Agriculture and Rural Development with a concentration in Business Economics. He first came to work for Abaarso School in 2017 and has since worked for both Barwaaqo University and Kaabe Schools. Taking what he has learned from all three schools, Jin strives to improve and streamline operational and financial systems to ensure affordable, quality educational access for Abaarso Network students across Somaliland.
Sean Howard is the Chief of Staff for the Abaarso Network. Prior to joining Abaarso School, Sean graduated from the State University of New York at Plattsburgh, with a major in Finance. After graduation he joined the Peace Corps and served in Northern Province, Zambia, working in the sector of Rural Education Development. While in Zambia, Sean was a valued faculty member of Kafula Primary School, focusing his fellowship work in Literacy and Teacher Capacity Building.
Sean came to Somaliland in 2020, heading Admissions and Operations for Abaarso School, the Network’s flagship school. Sean is now part of the centralized Abaarso Network team, providing strategic guidance and operational support, helping Abaarso Network advance its mission of providing high-quality education across Somaliland.
Liz is from Northwestern Ontario, Canada. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Commerce from Ryerson University in Toronto and a Master of Arts in English Philology with a focus on Adult Language Education from LCC in Klaipeda, Lithuania. She is a candidate for a Master in Public Administration from the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Canada. She has worked in Corporate Training and Development programs in South Korea and Czech Republic, with Military Language Training Programs in Kuwait, and public and private high schools in China.
Unity W Gwindi, coming from Zimbabwe. She joined Abaarso Network in 2021 because of her passion to foster collaboration and drive change in African communities, all while finding inspiration in interacting with diverse cultures. She worked in procurement and as a Legal Advisor for a mining company in Southern Africa for three years before joining us. Her academic background includes a Master of Business Administration and an Honours Degree in Law, Leadership, and TEFL certifications. Unity enjoys problem solving and has a passion for cultural diversity in organizations.
Gabriella is from Brighton in the UK and has worked in education for 11 years. Before and during her BA in Classics at University College London she taught music at a homeschooling group, interned with the Centre for Transnational Development and Collaboration and volunteered at refugee camps and in detention centres. She was a primary school teacher in Khartoum, Sudan. A four-month contract with Barwaaqo University, setting up the all-women’s college in its new campus became four and a a half years with Abaarso Network. After two years at Barwaaqo as a teacher and various other roles, she studied her MPhil at the University of Cambridge in Knowledge, Power, and Politics in Education. She returned to Barwaaqo as Director of Missions and Student Services followed by Head of Upper School at Abaarso School. She now starts her PhD in Educational Leadership and Policy at University of Toronto specializing in Comparative, International, and Development Education whilst continuing with Abaarso Network remotely as Teacher Alumni Coordinator. She speaks French and continues to learn Somali.
Sophia spent the majority of her childhood in Chicago, USA. After graduating from the University of Missouri with a Bachelor’s of Health Science in Health Sciences with an emphasis in Health and Wellness with minors in Psychology, Human Development and Family Science, and a Multicultural Certificate, she moved to Seoul, South Korea. In Seoul, she worked in the private sector as an ESL instructor for primary and secondary students. She also volunteered her time for a nonprofit organization working with North Korean refugees. During this time, she came to realize the link between education, well-being, and socioeconomic status, defining the pivotal role educators play around the world.
She came to Somaliland in 2021 as an English Professor at Barwaaqo University. In her two and a half years with Barwaaqo, she also served a Media and Communications Lead, Library Administrator, Campus Health Lead, and Community Education Coordinator. She now works in Hargeisa with Abaarso Network as Development Manager.
Meg was raised in East Africa and attended international school in Kenya until finishing secondary. She studied Secondary Education and History for her Bachelor’s in the United States and then moved to Tanzania to pursue a career in teaching in 2005. She has taught at a number of different levels, ranging from A-levels International History to Early Years Swimming. Meg moved to School Administration in 2018 as the Primary Principal at a school in Zanzibar, Tanzania and into a shared role as Primary Principal and Student Services Coordinator the following year. Since the, she has completed her Masters in Special Educational Needs. Meg has three children who attend Kaabe.
Marlee Burns is the President for Barwaaqo University. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in International Relations, Middle Eastern Studies and Plan II Honors from the University of Texas at Austin, and her Masters in Policy, Organization, and Leadership Studies from the Stanford Graduate School of Education. During her time at Sanford, her research focused on implementing design thinking curricula in schools. Her professional experience is at the intersection of rural education and technology, having spent time as a Fulbright Scholar in rural Azerbaijan and three years as the Head of Upper-School at Abaarso School. She also interned with the White House during the Obama Administration and spent several years as an engineer with Down Dog App in Silicon Valley. She was thrilled to return to Somaliland and to be working with innovative, driven educators and brilliant young students.
