Editorial

Perspective: No User Fee for Schools … Commendable … Ambitious Move … Principals, Stop The Bad Mouthing …

Minister Ruel Reid

The Andrew Michael Holness led government has announced an intention to put an end to user fees for parents to send their children and wards to attend High schools. Some High schools charge as low as $2500 to $30, 000+. There are a wide range of charges being asked for by various schools.

The J$19, 000 being offered is a great proposal as it provides stability of income to education funding. Most of the schools cannot even collect fifty percent of their targeted sum. There has been some resistance to the “new no user fee” policy proposal. Why is this so?

Let us for example look at this example: School x of 1000 students charges parents J$10000 per term as Auxiliary fees netting J$10, 000, 000. If that school collects 40 percent this would net J$4, 000,000.

Stability Of Funding

An example …
Holness’ Plan of J$19,000 per student would net J$19,000,000. So the Plan would send schools smiling to the bank. The Holiness plan would mean greater stability for schools with respect to funding … a funding plan that can be a definite source of known funds that the school can hold accountable. This will be realized for the first time as stability is now in place.

Principals on Friday last accepted the proposal with slight modifications.

It is also better for all as parents will no longer have an excuse to use lack of money to keep children at home and educators to spend scarce human resources on fund raising.

There will have to be greater transparency by school administrators regarding the management of these funds, and we wonder if this may be the reason for some opposition?

Hopeton O’Connor-Dennie is Senior International Correspondent & Photojournalist for Vision Newspaper Canada.

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