Konneh says no sacrifice is too big or small in service of his country

Richmond Mohamed Konneh is driven by his passion for education for which no sacrifice is too big or two small. Almost going to two years now he relocated to Liberia to take the position of director for special and inclusive education at the Ministry of Education. It took him eight months of going to work with no pay before his application was processed through the Civil Service Agency and for his name to be on payroll. For a man who spent 15 years teaching in the US public school system with annual salary of over $60,000 going back to Liberia, spending eight months not getting paid is a huge sacrifice.

Only love for country could make anyone to make such a sacrifice. When I asked why he accepted such condition, he said, “am driven by my passion for education and sense of duty to country.” He said, “the journey has been tough but I am glad I made the decision to come back home to contribute.”

As part of his efforts to create more awareness about special education in Liberia, he started a radio program at Truth FM where he interviews educators about providing educational assistance to the blind, deaf, and physically challenged.

Out of curiosity I accompanied him today to the radio station where he interviewed a deaf student through a sign language interpreter as the young lady and her mother explained her difficulty and the need for financial assistance to keep her in school. As the interview progressed, a caller called and pledged $150.00 to be picked up next week to cover her tuition for the whole year.

According to Director Konneh, his office of special education does not have any budget outside of the general educational budget of the ministry and as such he uses his radio program at time to solicit assistance for deaf, blind and physically challenged students whose parents cannot afford to pay for their children’s education.

Nvasekie Konneh