Xyra Sace

Business Development and Marketing Officer, KELY Alumna

"In whatever stage of life you are in, always remember that you can be true to yourself and usually that’s when you reach your full potential, no one else is going to do it for you, so you have to trust yourself, work on yourself and love yourself."

My life pretty much started when I dropped out of high school against all odds. I could have stayed in high school, but i’ve never looked back since.

School isn't for everyone - I know this from my own experience. I did well enough academically, but I really struggled with the pressure to maintain my grades. I felt like maybe something was wrong with me, because I didn't fit the traditional education system. It affected me on such an emotional and mental level, thinking that I wasn't good enough.

In secondary school, I attended my first KELY programme. The topic was about drugs and alcohol, but they taught life skills like communication, dealing with conflict, and self-awareness - real-life skills that schools don't (but should!) teach. That first programme kickstarted my personal development journey. Over the next few years, I continued to deepen my understanding of myself and learn about others who also didn't fit in at school. Throughout this process, I realised that there was nothing wrong with me - there are simply different types of people, each with their unique abilities and talents.

At 17, I decided to drop out of school to pursue a career. My friends and family couldn't understand my decision and many of them tried to talk me out of it, but I knew in my heart that it was the right thing to do.

The KELY team helped to connect me to a digital education startup where I got my first job as a marketing executive. I learned everything by doing - whether it was running advertising campaigns, creating graphics, building websites, you name it. Because the team was really small, I also got to step outside of my official role and do things like teaching coding classes. Whenever I faced a new challenge, I told myself: There's no 'I don't know', only 'I WILL know'.

Today, I'm continuing to build my career in education and I want to start a business one day. My number one goal in life is for society to appreciate people from all walks of life, for no one to be looked down upon. I want to create an education system that is inclusive of all students.