It’s another busy school day for children across Liberia, including students at the G. Flama Sherman Preparatory School. However, many of them are sitting outside their classrooms, hopelessly waiting for the day to pass.
These children are not outside because they do not want to learn. Instead, they are burdened with many concerns. Some are still reflecting on the passing of their respected teacher, Ama Butler, who greatly contributed to learning at the school. Others are worried about the leaking roof and broken wooden floor of their school building, conditions that have made learning increasingly difficult.
It has been decades since any major renovation was carried out on the school building. What further complicates the situation is that the building is not owned by the Ministry of Education but is instead a rented facility.
Meet six-year-old Docus and seven-year-old Eva. Unlike many of their classmates who are playing outside, the two stand quietly and sadly. According to them, classes have been suspended for over a week because their classroom has been flooded.
Eva and Docus, both first-grade students, told our reporter that the situation occurs every rainy season. They led us to their flooded classroom while their teachers sat outside the building.
In their soft and saddened voices, they explained that flooding is not the only problem. The deteriorating wooden floor has caused injuries to several students and even one of their teachers, who reportedly requested reassignment after sustaining a leg injury from the damaged floorboards.
School authorities say they have exhausted all efforts to seek intervention from both local authorities and the national government, but the Ministry of Education has remained silent.
The G. Flama Sherman Kindergarten School is the only notable preschool institution in River Cess. However, since its establishment in the 1950s, it has remained in a rented building that does not meet the standards required for early childhood education by the Ministry of Education.
A school official who spoke on condition of anonymity said students are exposed to daily risks because the school lacks a playground and is not fenced, resulting in frequent encounters between children and passing motorbikes.
Since the end of Liberia’s civil war, the Ministry of Education has constructed several school buildings in rural parts of River Cess. Yet, the G. Flama Sherman Kindergarten School, located in the county capital, remains in a rented structure owned by Mr. Gallow B. Roberts, former Coordinator of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The situation has generated public concern, with many residents questioning why the government continues to rent an aging building while constructing new schools elsewhere across Liberia.
Responding to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request filed by our reporter to determine how much the government pays for the facility, Mr. Gallow B. Roberts disclosed that the Ministry of Education signed a lease agreement with him on March 2, 2009, agreeing to pay US$3,500 annually for use of the building.
According to the agreement, the lessee is responsible for maintaining the premises, including fixtures, throughout the lease period and must promptly carry out all minor repairs, alterations, and changes. The agreement further states that biannual inspections of the premises should be conducted by the Bureau of Real Estate and Public Property of the General Services Agency.
The school’s principal, Martha Gbajolo, said the building has not undergone any major renovation and that learning continues to be disrupted by heavy rainfall that floods the classrooms.
“The kids are sitting in the rain. There is no space in the classroom because the entire building is flooded, so we are sitting outside here. We cannot take the children inside there. Every day we talk about this, but no one listens to us. Every year, classes are disrupted because of the rain,” she told our reporter.
She further stated that the school is unable to fully implement the Ministry of Education’s early childhood curriculum because the classrooms are too small to accommodate the required learning activities.
“We are unable to teach all the lessons prescribed by the curriculum for early childhood education because the classrooms are small and cannot permit such exercises,” Principal Gbajolo emphasized.
- Flama Sherman Kindergarten School is the only government-owned Early Childhood Development (ECD) institution in Cestos City. Since its establishment in the 1950s, it has operated from the same rented wooden building.
The school has educated and mentored several prominent government officials, including the current River Cess County Superintendent, Byron W. Zahnwea.
The ongoing situation continues to raise questions among citizens. Why is the government still renting an old and unsafe structure when it has the capacity to construct new school buildings? Who is behind the continuation of this leasing arrangement when a permanent facility could be built?
Many residents hoped these questions would be addressed during the Minister of Education’s visit to River Cess in 2025. However, the visit was merely a stopover from Sinoe County, leaving many concerns unresolved. River Cess continues to face significant challenges with school infrastructure, not only at the early childhood level but also in its high schools.
An Investigative Report By Gabriel B. Sawah
