There's a distinct sense that God is moving our mission and the school into a new chapter. A period where we can grow and mature. Where we can invest and reach out. It's new and unfamiliar, but so exciting.
Please Pray:
- That we will be able to balance the books this year
- For a successful supporter campaign
- That the way we work will be a witness to parents
- For us make God central as we look to the future
SCHOOL FINANCES are better. This year sees some investment and a determination to finally, completely, once and for all put the 2012 financial crisis behind us. Is also frees us up to think about our...
...THREE YEAR STRATEGY which will give us a clear plan of growth and development. It's structured around the the key elements of the school. We are:
Christian - So we want to increase scholarships, invest in pastoral care and reach out to others. This week I am working with our parent organisation, ARM, to build permanent , long-term links between their healthcare, social development and evangelistic programmes and each of the school's four 'Houses'.
English-Speaking - We want to guarantee levels of student and staff fluency and be a leader in the promotion of English language eduction.
International - Moving to better than UK exam results, international facilities and standards. The first step towards this is our...
...2014/15 SUPPORTER CAMPAIGN. In the new year we are launching an appeal for three needs:
1) £15,000 to complete our final, unfinished building so that we can provide the Secondary School with a much needed Library. Libraries do not really exist in Burundi, but is an essential resource for our future leaders who want to progress to university.
2) Library books. A library needs books. We are trying to get donations of everything from teenage fiction, classic fiction and research books.
3) Filling our container. Through a relationship with another NGO, we have been able to secure very reasonable shipping rates for a container which can ship to us in March. But we need to fill it, so we will be approaching schools and organisations for school resources that can be donated and put in the container.
The campaign is ambitious, and not like anything we've done before, but we are hopeful that this will be a new way in which we can generate support for the school. Also, to help how we operate, I recently isolated myself for a week to write new...
...POLICIES AND GOVERNANCE. Writing does not come easy or naturally to me. I don't have the patience. But as I wrote these policies I became so aware of how the school is maturing and the staff have a desire to adopt best practices. The big ones were operational processes (how we work together), security policies (how we keep everyone safe and calm over the next year) and financial governance (how we can be good stewards of our financial resources). All of which will help our...
...NEW ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF manage the school. Due to some departures and new roles, we have a great new Admin Team, but it's been a tough and busy time for them; trying to understand the school, what needs changing and how to work together as the school has...
...CONTINUED GROWTH. Despite increased competition, the school is fuller than ever, particularly for A-levels. We don't seek to be competative, but parents vote with their feet and wouldn't be bringing their children if were letting them down. And many are excited by the unique...
...GRADUATE OPPORTUNITIES we offer. My relationship manager, Maya, is working tirelessly to build relationships, partnerships and scholarship opportunities at English-speaking universities in Africa, Europe, America and the Pacific. If we are to truly equip Burundi with a new generation of Godly leaders we must find opportunities for our students to get quality degrees.
NEXT?
I'm working with our student leaders to role out our values and changes in the Secondary School.
We prepare for exams.
And we pray and prepare for an uncertain year where political events may disrupt school life, our work and our iGCSE and A-Level exams.
God Bless,
Jeremy
