NCAA Eligibility Approved for Abaarso School in Somaliland

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) counts 1,101 institutions as members in the US and one in Canada, Simon Fraser University (SFU) in British Columbia.

The second non-American school in the NCAA is now Abaarso School in Hargeisa, Somaliland. As a result, Abaarso School will be the only NCAA member that is not from North America.

This membership of and affiliation with the NCAA will again put Somaliland on the global spot as the academic performance of its students, that led some to have gotten educational scholarships from US Ivy League universities, has already made Somaliland well-known.

This eligibility is sure to open doors for many of our students who hope to participate in NCAA athletics in the United States! If you have any questions, please reach out to our counselor at counselor@abaarsoschool.org

— Abaarso School of Science & Technology (@AbaarsoSchool) August 5, 2024

The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a member-led organization dedicated to the well-being and lifelong success of college athletes. NCAA schools award nearly $3.5 billion in athletic scholarships every year

The NCAA, a member-led organization, was founded in 1906 to regulate the rules of college sports and protect young athletes, and in 1910 it was renamed the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

As college athletics grew, bigger schools invested more in their sports programs, while smaller-budget schools struggled to keep pace. In 1973, the association’s membership was divided into Divisions I, II, and III, with each division having legislative powers and separate championships. The NCAA’s current three-division structure was adopted to create a fair playing field for teams from similar schools and provide college athletes with more opportunities to participate in national championships.

More than 500,000 college athletes across all three divisions compete for about 1,100-member schools in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and even Canada

Among the three NCAA divisions, Division I schools generally have the biggest student bodies, manage the largest athletic budgets, and offer the highest number of athletic scholarships.

53 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are included in the NCAA.

About Abaarso School

Abaarso School of Science and Technology is a non-profit, co-educational boarding school in Maroodi Jeex, Somaliland. Established in 2009 by Jonathan Starr, the school has sent over 60 students to elite prep schools and colleges, including Amherst, Georgetown, MIT, and Harvard. Admissions are test-based and have become increasingly selective, with a competitive 9% acceptance rate for seventh grade in the 2015–2016 school year.

Abaarso offers six years of practical and culturally relevant education, taught entirely in English, with the exception of Islamic Studies/Arabic courses and Somali courses. The curriculum is based on the American system and is tailored to meet Somaliland’s educational standards. The campus includes a school building, 39 staff boarding units, separate boys’ and girls’ dormitories, a mosque, a cafeteria, computer and chemistry laboratories, a training center, a large library, a football field, basketball, volleyball, and tennis courts, girls’ sports compound with a basketball court and soccer field, and multiple guard towers.

In 2014, Abaarso was awarded a grant from American Schools and Hospitals Abroad (ASHA) that allowed the school to build new facilities, including classrooms, computer and tablet labs, dorms, and staff housing. In 2015, ASHA granted Abaarso $879,225 to further expand and update facilities.

Students are assigned work-times to create a sense of responsibility in maintaining the school environment, such as Operation Green, a group tasked with cultivating and managing the school gardens. Additionally, there is a Student Council that promotes student interests on campus.

Abaarso provides an assortment of extracurricular activities for student participation, including computer programming, chess, science, health, public speaking, debate, creative writing, improv, and drama. Athletic activities include basketball, football, running, and fitness training.

Abaarso School also offers community services for its students, including tutoring at the Hargeisa Orphanage and an afternoon primary school program. Since 2013, Abaarso has awarded five students from the village with scholarships.