Governor Martin Wambora has given the top KCPE pupil in Embu a four-year scholarship to study at Alliance High School.
Thirteen-year-old Telvin Gichuki, who scored 434 marks out of 500, said he was inspired by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga to become a civil engineer.
Both his parents were retrenched and were saddened that their son may miss a place in his dream school.
Telvin's father Octavias Gichuki worked as a physiotherapist in a private hospital, while his wife Caroline Wanja was a secretary in a private firm. They were both retrenched in November.
Telvin, a former pupil at Tenri Primary School was admitted to Alliance High School, but the parents were devastated because they could not afford the fees.
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Gichuki and his wife, residents of Muthatari village in Embu town, said they have been praying over the dilemma.
The parents were called by an Embu county government official who told them the Governor wanted to meet them and their son.
Gichuki says they could not believe their ears when the Governor told them about the scholarship.
"The boy has put Embu on the national map and made it shine. For this reason, we have decided to give him the four-year scholarship to enable him to study up to Form Four," Wambora told the Star in his office on Sunday.
Telvin said he admires Opposition leader Raila Odinga whose engineering work has been excellent.
He has read extensively about Raila and found him a steadfast politician and an engineer of repute, he said.
Governor Wambora: "The boy has put Embu on the national map and made it shine. For this reason, we have decided to give him the four-year scholarship to enable him to study up to Form Four."