Nelly Cheboi, who creates computer labs for Kenyan schoolchildren, is CNN's Hero of the Year

Summary

Nelly Cheboi was named CNN’s 2022 Hero of the Year after online voters selected her from the year’s Top 10 CNN Heroes. Cheboi left a software engineering job in Chicago in 2019 and co-founded TechLit Africa, a nonprofit that provides refurbished computers and digital-skills education to children in rural Kenya. The organization currently serves students at 10 schools and hopes to expand to 100 more within a year. Cheboi, who grew up in poverty in Mogotio, Kenya, said her own limited access to computers shaped her commitment to helping children gain skills in coding, graphic design, marketing, and other fields. TechLit receives donated equipment, wipes and refurbishes it, and distributes it to partner schools, where children ages 4 to 12 receive daily classes and opportunities to learn from professionals. The award provides Cheboi with $100,000, while an Elevate Prize grant adds $300,000 and other support for TechLit Africa. The ceremony also recognized nonprofits addressing food waste, autism support, animal rescue, nursing-home needs, battery recycling, and election-related harassment. Among those honored were Georgia poll workers Shaye Moss and Ruby Freeman, who faced false election-fraud allegations circulated on social media.