Mentee Reflections from the ECS Advisership Program: Jacinta Mukonyo Mutwiwa

What specific goal or project did you bring into the Advisership Program, and how did working with your mentor help you progress toward it?

I brought my project, “Modelling a School-Based Intervention for Children Facing Environmental Stress in Kenya,” which aims to develop a culturally sensitive psychological intervention for children affected by poverty and displacement. My mentor, Prof. Theresa Tchombe, provided invaluable guidance in refining the intervention’s theoretical grounding. She helped me strengthen the integration of trauma-informed frameworks with socio-emotional learning (SEL) and resilience-building strategies, ensuring the model was both evidence-based and contextually relevant for the Kenyan school setting. Her feedback on the methodology, particularly around teacher capacity building and family engagement, significantly enhanced the project’s feasibility and sustainability.

Can you describe a moment or piece of advice from your mentor that changed the way you think about your research or career?

Prof. Tchombe emphasized the importance of culturally anchored research, reminding me that effective interventions must emerge from the lived realities of the communities they serve rather than simply importing external models. She encouraged me to prioritize local knowledge, teacher insights, and community voices in shaping the intervention. This advice reshaped my approach to research design and deepened my commitment to developing contextually relevant solutions for children facing environmental stress in Kenya.

What was the biggest challenge you faced during this mentorship, and how did the guidance you received help you navigate it?

The biggest challenge was ensuring the intervention model adequately addressed the distinct needs of both displaced children and those experiencing poverty-related chronic stress. Prof. Tchombe guided me in disaggregating these experiences while identifying common pathways for support. Her expertise in child development and African educational contexts helped me refine the intervention components to target specific vulnerabilities, such as trauma symptoms among displaced children and cognitive impacts of poverty, while maintaining a cohesive, integrated framework.

What have you achieved since your first advising session that you believe wouldn’t have happened without this mentorship?

I successfully developed a comprehensive intervention framework with clearly defined core components: trauma-informed practices, SEL programs, and resilience-building strategies. The project now includes robust teacher training modules and family engagement strategies that reflect Prof. Tchombe’s emphasis on sustainable support systems. Additionally, with her encouragement and a strong recommendation letter she graciously provided, I was able to submit an abstract for the upcoming Biennial Meeting in South Korea, which has been accepted, and applied for a travel grant to support my attendance.

How has this experience influenced your confidence, skills, or plans for the next stage of your career?

This mentorship has profoundly strengthened my confidence as an early career researcher. Prof. Tchombe’s guidance validated the importance of my work and affirmed my ability to contribute meaningfully to child psychology and educational intervention research in the Global South. Her mentorship has inspired me to pursue further collaborative opportunities and to continue developing culturally adaptable models that can support vulnerable children across similar contexts. I now feel better equipped to engage with the international research community and to advocate for school-based mental health interventions in Kenya and beyond.