By Christine Mirembe
Each school offered Newton Kucel a chance to learn. However, each unpaid tuition bill threatened to take that chance away. Once such threats became real, rather than abandon his education, Kucel adopted an unusual strategy: whenever fees accumulated beyond what he could pay, he moved to another school. That cycle defined much of his academic journey in upper primary school.
Decades later, Kucel’s is a story told with admiration for his perseverance. He is a prominent agricultural researcher, lecturer, innovation officer and national examiner whose work is influencing indigenous vegetable research and agricultural education across Uganda.
Kucel’s tuition challenges began with the demise of his father in 2001. Born in the northern Uganda district of Gulu, Kucel’s childhood changed drastically while he was in Primary Five. “When my father died, I started paying my school fees until Primary Seven,” he said.
Still passionate about school, he resorted to farming as one of the ways to raise money for school fees. Kucel reared poultry, pigs and other animals to raise money for tuition. Meanwhile, his mother sold vegetables in the market to provide for her four children.
Kucel Newton, a Ugandan agriculturalist
“I managed to go through the first term of Senior One with the finances I had accumulated during the long holidays,” Kucel narrates. However, he got to a point where he could no longer afford the tuition or a change of school to evade paying fees.
It was at that point that he relocated to Kampala to seek odd jobs. “I stumbled upon Agape Children’s Christian Center, where I met Mrs. Catherine Wana, who gave me a place to sleep,” he said. At Agape, Dr. Laurie Wells was the main sponsor working hand in hand with Mrs. Wana.
Wana enrolled Kucel at Agro Links Academy, a secondary school in Kampala. She also sponsored his education throughout secondary school, enabling him to complete his A’level studies.
Through the support of Dr. Laurie Wells, Kucel joined Uganda Christian University (UCU) in 2016 to pursue Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Science and Entrepreneurship, continuing with the dream of a profession that first gave him the opportunity to stay in school when he lost his father. This four-year course trains students in crop and animal husbandry, agribusiness management, value addition and modern farming as a profitable business.
At UCU, Kucel found mentors who shaped his professional and personal growth. He often consulted Prof. Elizabeth Kizito, Dr. John Livingstone Mutyaba, and many other senior members of the faculty. Over time, he developed confidence not only as a student but also as a researcher capable of contributing to global conversations.
Upon completing his undergraduate studies, Kucel was retained as a research assistant in the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences. He was later appointed a tutorial assistant. He is currently an assistant lecturer. His master’s degree, Master of Science in Agriculture and Rural Development, which he completed in October 2025, was sponsored by Uganda Christian University Partners.
His undergraduate research focused on the pollen production and viability of Solanum Aethiopicum Shum, a vegetable locally called nakati in Uganda. For his master’s research, Kucel examined yield performance and market acceptability of selected Solanum aethiopicum Gilo Genotypes. His work has contributed to research that helped support the release of improved “nakati” varieties in Uganda.
Today, Kucel is also a lecturer and the academic registrar at Centenary Community College Kayunga. He serves as an examiner for agriculture and biological sciences with the Uganda Vocational and Technical Assessment Board, and contributes as a research and innovation officer in multiple organizations as well as providing consultancy.
His expertise has also extended beyond Uganda. In 2025, he presented a research paper at theAcademic Council on the United Nations System in Nairobi, Kenya, where he became part of a UN scholars’ program.
Despite his growing professional success, Kucel has not forgotten where he came from. Having experienced poverty and hopelessness firsthand, he wants to create opportunities for vulnerable children just as others once did for him. After losing an older brother who left behind four children, Kucel took the responsibility of supporting the family.
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