Kenyan-born guide runner returns to Ottawa with EMU Master

Josh Karanja has been in Canada for a majority of his life now, but looking back to when he moved to Ottawa from Kenya with his mother at age 11, there’s no doubt Jason Dunkerley’s guide runner qualifies as an immigration success story.


The 27-year-old recently came home with a Master’s degree in public administration from Eastern Michigan University.

“I’m super proud of him,” says Karanja’s coach, Ian Clark. “He’s fought for everything he’s got – whether it’s his athletics or his academics. He’s come by it honestly.”

Karanja received an athletic scholarship while running for the Eagles, but paid for the final year of Master’s studies once his athletic eligibility was up.

“I don’t know if I would have done a Master’s if I hadn’t gone down there,” notes Karanja, who believes he would have stayed in Ottawa for post-secondary studies if it weren’t for the scholarship offer. “I got to experience something different than most people. I was lucky.”

In his youth career, Karanja missed out on a chance to represent Canada because his citizenship papers weren’t finalized, although the steeplechase specialist eventually did get to compete with a maple leaf on his chest at the 2009 Francophone Games in Lebanon.

“It was fun,” recalls Karanja, who loved receiving his team gear. “I was finally running for Canada in an international event. I’d waited for so long.”

On top of work at the Running Room, taking French courses, and his guide runner duties, Karanja helped coach his old cross-country team at Nepean High School this fall, and he also volunteers at the Boys and Girls Club, where he helps youngsters between the ages of six and 10 learn to swim.

“A lot of the kids there migrated here too,” Karanja notes. “It’s nice to see a different face than just a Cajun face so they can relate somehow.”

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