Chargers Travel to Tanzania Through Enactus Partnership

Students pose with children in Mbuguni, Tanzania.
Photo by Juju Neves

Students from Briar Cliff University traveled to Mbuguni, Tanzania, this year as part of the university’s Enactus program, continuing a long-standing partnership focused on poverty alleviation and sustainable development.

The trip is part of a collaboration between Briar Cliff’s Enactus team and the local charity STEMM in Mbuguni. Since becoming Enactus faculty advisor in 2015, Judy Thompson has helped oversee the university’s involvement in the initiative, which began under a former advisor a few years earlier.

“In January of 2016 we sent four Enactus students to Mbuguni,” Thompson said. “With the exception of a couple of COVID years, we have sent BCU Enactus students to Tanzania each year.”

This year, five students made the trip: Carl-Andy Michel, Ondine Manceau, Alex Johnson, Emma Brenelli and Juju Neves. During their time in the village, students worked on projects aimed at creating long-term economic and educational impact.

Current initiatives include funding canal connectors to bring irrigation water to farmers, allowing them to produce surplus crops to sell. The team is also renovating a public elementary school one classroom at a time, providing desks so children no longer have to sit on concrete floors. Additionally, Enactus has supplied sewing machines to local elementary schools so uniforms can be repaired, ensuring students are able to attend classes.

The organization now also partners with Charity Tanzania on several of these projects and is in the planning stages of building an athletic facility for children in the village.

To fund the trip and ongoing projects, the Enactus team organizes a series of campus and community fundraisers throughout the year. Efforts include selling Krispy Kreme donuts and Chick-fil-A sandwiches at Briar Cliff basketball games, hosting a Halloween party with the Multicultural Club, writing grants, collecting donations and managing a GoFundMe page. Funds also support the team’s participation in Entrepalooza, known as “Swimming with the Sharks,” and travel to Denver for the Enactus National Expo.

For students, the experience extends beyond project work.

Alex Johnson, one of the five students who traveled this year, said choosing a favorite memory from the trip was difficult.

“That’s a really hard question — every day was an amazing experience,” Johnson said. “But I would have to say playing in a local soccer match was truly special. Being able to connect on a local level where the whole village came out to watch and support was truly amazing. It really showed me the power of sport and how it brought people together no matter their situation, and being a soccer player at Briar Cliff, that meant more.”

Johnson said the match became even more memorable when his team rallied from a 4-1 deficit to tie the game 4-4. He contributed one goal and two assists and was named player of the match.

For Juju Neves, the trip left a lasting impression. “100% I would go back next week if I could,” Neves said.

Thompson emphasized that the partnership is designed to create sustainable change while also shaping students’ perspectives. By engaging directly with community members in Mbuguni, students gain firsthand experience in service leadership, entrepreneurship and cross-cultural collaboration.

As Briar Cliff’s Enactus program continues its annual commitment to Tanzania, the impact is felt both in Mbuguni and back on campus — where students return with broadened worldviews, stronger connections and a renewed sense of purpose.