Meet Jonathan Maka

📍 Hometown: Democratic Republic of Congo
🎓 Major: Elementary Education
🌱 Minor: Agricultural Sales

➜ How did you become a K-State student?

I never thought I’d be at K-State.

When I first came here, it was through the Mandela Washington Fellowship Program, a leadership institute program hosted by the U.S. government. About 500 young African leaders are selected to participate each year.

I came to K-State in 2022 for six weeks and was placed here because of my interest in civic engagement.

After that experience, I went back to the Congo and worked for a year on a project. But I realized that in order to take my project further, it was important to go back to school and earn a degree.

I was already teaching in the Congo, but I wanted to make sure I was officially a licensed teacher. I decided to apply to K-State and was accepted as a full-time student in March 2023.

➜ Why did you choose the College of Education and your other academic studies?

Education is my passion.

I never thought I would be a teacher until I started volunteering at an American school in the Congo. My first interaction with a student was with a kindergartener who was speaking English.

In the Congo, we speak French, so hearing a Congolese child speaking English was amazing. I realized I was 100% going to work in education.

I started teaching, and it was awesome. I fell in love with it. At some point, I realized I had been involved in education almost all my life without knowing it.

My grandfather used to be the minister of education in my country, and my uncle was as well. Several other family members were teachers. Because of that passion, I decided to study education.

I also love agriculture. I developed a love of cooking and food when I was young. I would help my family in the kitchen and garden, where I learned about good- and bad-quality products.

Coming into a new country where education was in a different language, I didn’t want to double-major. I talked with the College of Agriculture during my sophomore year and found agricultural sales.

Both areas work perfectly with the nonprofit I want to start.

➜ Tell us about the nonprofit organization you want to start.

I want to start a nonprofit organization in the Congo with a learning center. The school would provide free education to orphans, low-income children and “shégués” — children who live on the street and have nowhere to go.

There’s no one to care for them, and it’s hard to see that. The school could be a boarding school where students have housing, food and education all at the same time.

I’m also thinking about children in the eastern part of the Congo, where there’s conflict. There are probably more than a million kids who don’t have access to quality education, and maybe no education at all.

This war has been going on for 30 years. Imagine the first kids who were there when the war started. They might not have had any education. Those kids could grow up to be 40 or 70 years old without an education.

That’s not the country I want to have.

If my school can help our country have a better future, why not?

The goal is to have no tuition. I want the school to have the right standards, with quality beds, food and school supplies. But that takes a lot of money, which is why I’m taking my time to think, collaborate and network with the right people.

➜ What’s the atmosphere like in the College of Education?

The College of Education is a great place and has a lot of support.

There are lots of people who are open and curious to know who you are. Many students and faculty I’ve met have been friendly. They want to talk with you, see what you’re able to do, understand who you are and learn how you think.

They try to involve you in different projects, even if they aren’t related to your field of study, because they want you to learn and grow as much as possible.

We’re not only gaining educational knowledge, we’re also being trained to be leaders.

In the classroom, you’re not only teaching; you’re leading students and influencing their lives. I really appreciate that about the College of Education.

➜ What’s one of your favorite memories from K-State?

A few summers ago, I was working as a new student ambassador, and it was great.

I never knew I had to learn to sing the Alma Mater or how important it was until I started that job. I always heard the Alma Mater or fight song playing, but I never knew the lyrics!