Kpan’s Town, Marshall – Nursery Rhymes and songs filled the air, as kids of the Butterfly Early Learning Center in Kpan’s Town Marshall, as their new learning center was being set up.
Report by Mae Azango [email protected]
The little children, dressed in khaki and blue uniforms, happily formed a cycle and played games as they clapped their hands and sang with so much energy.
The Butterfly Early Learning Center in collaboration with the Ministry of Education on Yesterday opened and dedicated a new five-classroom early learning facility with a mini bathroom attached.
“I want to focus my message on the parents; I know you people think I am hard on you, but if I am not hard on you, these children won’t be what we want them to be,” says Assistant Minister of childhood Education, Ukiko Amnon.
‘We want your children to be the people you can rely on in the future and in doing so, we have to start at this early stage,” she said.
“We want you to take this project as your very own, I want to thank Lisa who has built this Butterfly early childhood development school.”
“So, help to look after this school, because nobody can do it for you but your selves,” said Assistant Minister Amnon.
She said the citizens of Kpan’s Town were willing to give more land to build grade school and staff quarters, so the children won’t have to go a long distance to school.
And they have registered 65 students, including children above the targeted range of three to five-year-olds.
“Since some older children who have not been to school, we decided to also register them for the speed school program, to get them to the level with other kids and send them off to nearby grade school,” Assistant Minister Amnon added.
According to the Ministry of Education’s mandate, parents should pay L$3,500 for early childhood and parents agreed for the children to bring the locally made rattan chairs until the school furniture can arrive.
“As for uniforms we sew, it not for profit,” she said, adding that parents would buy a pair of shoes for their kids for meager L$200.00.
Lisa Antoune, founder of the school, said Butterfly started when she came from France and saw that many kids did not know how to write their own names.
She explained that when she confronted the villagers, they agreed that they wanted a school building because the only public school was too far to allow the little children to cross the road and attend.
She said she met Assistant Minister Amnon in 2011 who helped her with the project.
“We have 15 volunteers in France who have never been in Liberia but they collected funds for this project. We created events and collected the sum of US$40,000, which is not a small amount.
“Why we put all that the money in the school, is because we believe that Education can raise a community and bring good jobs for your kids.
She thanked the Ministry of Education, Kpan Town, and other partners in making their dream a reality,” says Mrs. Antoune, of Butterfly Early Learning Center.
French Ambassador Joel Godeau said due to the well-known financial gaps, not enough schools can be opened as it should be so many children in rural areas particularly and in remote villages have no chance of being provided education.
But today was a happy day for the children of Kpan’s town and for the whole community.
“I will start by reminding you the words that President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf said when she spoke on education:
‘Children are the Liberia’s greater resources’. So with patience, courage and tenacity, Lisa Antoune with a few people along with French people here and in France, have worked together for the project to make this dream a reality.
“I want to congratulate the chairman of the Association of the Butterfly Early Childhood Development and Partner who contributed to this project,” Ambassador Godeau said.
Elder Jackson Gbaa of Kpan’s Town said they were happy for the school project because it will help educate their children.
“Many Parents in Kpan’s Town do not like to send their children to school.”
“As the Ministry of Education once said if parents do not send their children to school, parents should be penalized, therefore, I am appealing to the Ministry of Education to punish parents who do not sent their children to this school,” said Elder Gbaa.
Elder Gbaa also appealed to Antoune for the school to be extended to an elementary and junior high school and later to a high school.
Deputy Minister for Instruction at the Ministry of Education Romelle Horton cut the ribbon to the new school building and called on parents to send their children to school as they are the future leaders of Liberia.