School management’s role in achieving financial sustainability

Sunday, July 5th, 2009 | Sustainability

The management team of a school – the principal and governing body – has a responsibility towards financial sustainability of ICT facilities in a school.  Without management cooperation sustainability is not possible.

Management controls the financial resources of a school.  If the State provides funding for ICT it is up to management to decide how these funds are to be used in the best way.  This implies that management must have a good understanding of ICT requirements. What is the vision of the school in this regard?  Is this vision communicated to all staff members? 

If the State does not provide funding for ICT, management must decide how much is required to maintain the current technology, which may have been donated or provided as a one-off provision by the state.  What are the expected ongoing costs?  How would these costs be covered within the existing budget?  Which sources of funding could the school tap into?  Think about expenses such as:

  • additional electricity usage
  • internet access
  • insurance
  • security
  • paper and other consumables
  • maintenance service
  • staff training
  • upgrades
  • software licence fees
  • additional software.

A sustainability plan is necessary, regardless of whether the State provides the funding, or the school must find the funding themselves.

It is the responsibility of the principal to ensure that all members of the Governing Body understand the importance of ICT facilities and grasp the reasons for ongoing financial support of technology.

What can a teacher do to support school management to make the school’s ICT investment financially sustainable?  What can they do to keep expenses to a minimum?

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1 Comment to School management’s role in achieving financial sustainability

ALBIE
Sunday, 5 July, 2009

One of the better concept I came across in the poorer communities where schools struggle to maintain its ICT “direction”, is the notion of a group of parents who “adopted” a ws / computer @ their school and ensure that it is sustained year after year.

Maybe the LAB + OTHER technological devices and all its requirements should be made the communities’ responsibility to ensure functionality and sustainability. Some schools even “charged” the learners R2 when they want to use the computer.

Maybe some businesses can also adopt a computer to ensure a “healthy” ws in the LAB. Maintenance can be done by parents who are ICT skilled as part of their “school fees” contribution.

It is possible to have in the budget build in “funds” that will provide for the extras needed to maintain the LAB. The LAB is one of the most expensive items in a school – therfore it should be kept in tip top condition to ensure thst costs remain “low” – to achieve this notion all parties of the school should work together to achieve this goal – to keep the LAB and other technology in good condition for the learners.

Lastly, one of my schools do community training in their Khanya LAB. Parents and other interested members of the community enroll for a basic ICT MS Module course. The fees are paid and the 5th certificate ceremony was recently held. The money generated in this way is being used to “miantain” the LAB.

As Ingrid Graham once remarked: “Who should get involved?”

EVERYONE – ESPECIALLY THE CHILDREN
PRINCIPAL SHOULD TAKE THE LEAD BUT NOT TAKE OVER
PARENTS &
BROADER COMMUNITY

Albie

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