The
Case for Multi-Campus Private Schools in Uganda
Private education has been in an era
of expansion over the past decade, with class sizes increasing at many schools
and institutions, new schools and institutions opening, and some existing schools
adding distant campuses. The opening of multi-campus schools poses new issues
related to accreditation, communication, distance education technology, and
organizational structure and governance. A number of private schools and
institutions have had dual or multi-campus operations for many years. In recent
times there are more and more schools going down this road. UNAPSI explores
some of the reasons for having or developing a multi-campus operation and some
of the challenges it presents.
Why more than one Campus
There appear to be three main reasons for developing an additional campus or
campuses. One is in response to enrolment demand. The second is to reflect or
reinforce the school’s organizational structure and the third is to provide a
different educational dimension for a group of students. The reasons aren’t
always separable.
(a) Enrolment Demand
Over the past 20 years the growth of private school enrolments has been steady
and strong. The private sector the average size of enrolment per school has
increased by over 30%. The demand for private
education is likely to remain strong. Funding policies have meant that young
families have increased accessibility. Many have greater disposable income than
their parents at a similar age and they look for the dependable quality that a
private school is likely to be able to deliver.
It is not always easy for schools to resist the demand for places. The pressure
to enroll other siblings or children of alumni/ae can be quite severe. Even if
they do want to respond there may be practical difficulties such as there being
no room on a campus for additional facilities or the school may be prohibited
from expanding by a local government regulation.
Such factors have led schools to consider the development of an additional
campus. Sometimes the additional campus is a strategic move not so much in
response to demand, but to secure it. For example, a rapidly growing
development on the edge of a school’s catchment area may prompt it to set up a
campus there rather than have the education need filled by a new school which,
in later years, will become a significant competitor.
(b) Reinforcing the organizational structure
It is not uncommon for a school to be divided into campuses by level, for
example, with primary Year levels on a different campus to the secondary Year
levels. Sometimes Infant Year levels are separated. A number of schools have
separate senior Year levels. Not all such organizational structures are
reinforced by having separate campuses, but some are. Indeed, some schools with
large campuses have secondary Year levels at one end and primary ones at the
other. The separating distance might be only 300 or 400 metres, but there are a
lot of features of separate campuses present.
(c) Special Educational Programmes
An increasing number of schools have a separate campus to support special
programmes. Sometimes it can simply be a base for Outdoor Education. However,
there has been a growth in recent decades of campuses devoted to a special
programme for part or all of a Year group. Members of the Year group spend
anything from a few weeks to a year at the special campus. Sometimes the focus is on learning to live
together, sometimes on Outdoor Education. Often it is so that this group of
students can experience something different to what is, for them, normal. Thus
students at a city school may spend time in the country (or overseas) focusing
on ecology or another style of life. Students in an outer suburban school may
spend time at a campus learning about the resources of the city. There are many
variants of this type of special programme.
Multi-campus Organization & Challenges
A multi-campus operation presents a number of challenges, especially when at
least 2 of the campuses are year-round operations with significant numbers of
students. These challenges will relate to administration, resources and
programme. Close coordination will be vital lest destructive jealousy arise.
The Head will have the key responsibility for this.
Administration
Each campus will have a Campus Director (or Head of Campus) responsible to the
Head of School for the overall operation of the campus. At some schools the
Head doubles as Campus Director. This is not a good practice as the Head will
be torn between whole school issues and campus issues, most likely doing
justice to neither. If the campus is a
large one, i.e. with a year-round operation and a significant number of
students, the Campus Director will automatically be a member of the senior
management team. Other members of the senior management team are likely to be
the Director of Curriculum, the Business Manager, the Development Director and
quite probably the Director of Extra-Curricular Activities. The latter person
will have a substantial whole school coordinating role.
Resources
Allocation of resources is an area with the potential for conflict. A
perception that one campus is receiving more than its fair share can rankle.
This can be a particular problem if two of the campuses run parallel. Campus
Directors will need to be involved closely in creating the school’s annual
budget. There will be occasions when one
campus will receive more pro rata than another. Capital development is an
example. It is important that the budgeting process is sufficiently transparent
for the reasons for particular resource allocation to be clearly understood.
Programme
The programme and its delivery need special attention. With parallel campuses
parents need to be assured that a child in, say, Year 8 on one campus will not
be disadvantaged by comparison with one on another. The Director of curriculum
will need to ensure parity of standards.
Philosophy
In our experience, apart from the practical matters referred to in this article
the other thing that is essential to the harmonious operation of a multi-campus
school is that the school philosophy is clearly thought out and articulated.
Furthermore, it is a philosophy which must be lived on each campus.
The situation is that two (or more) significant groups of staff need to work
together consistently, but with only limited opportunities to meet. A shared
philosophy which underlies all that is done will achieve this in a way that
policies and directives can’t hope to do on their own.
Specific
Guidelines
UNAPSI recognizes
that multi campus arrangements may make sense for administrative, governance, and/or
financial reasons. However, UNAPSI reserves the right to determine how it will
view these new entities for purposes of accreditation.
UNAPSI proposes the following guidelines:
Pending
further review, UNAPSI will regard each campus location as a separate school
for purposes of accreditation (reports, visits, dues, etc.) regardless of
nomenclature suggesting one school on more than one campus.
A
school may demonstrate that the multiple campuses are in fact one school by
documenting in writing on the school’s information how each of the provided Standards for Accreditation is met by
the multi-campus entity as though it were a single school.
Unless
and until a school demonstrates to the satisfaction of UNAPSI that a branch
campus is part of the accredited school, as though the two campuses were a
single school, UNAPSI will consider the branch campus as a separate school and
does not authorize the awarding of reports, transcripts or certificates with
the name of the accredited school to students at that branch campus. The award
of such a transcript or certificates suggests the endorsement of the
accrediting agency and may be discouraged.
Major
Advantages or Benefits for Multi-Campus Programs
The
major advantages and benefits cited by schools for their multi-campus programs
were that it: allowed expansion of the class size, facilitated
interprofessional activities, improved cultural diversity, enhanced student
opportunities and experiences (including and enhanced utilization and
number of training sites.
Major
Challenges or Issues with Multi-Campus Programs
The major problems or issues cited
by schools for their multi-campus programs were: problems with effective
distance education technology, difficulties in communicating effectively
between campuses, difficulties in providing equivalent services or experiences
to all campuses, division or feelings of inequality among students or faculty
members; and difficulties in acclimating students when moving them from one
campus to another. There were many other issues reported which referred to school
operations, socialization, harmonization of policies, faculty workload,
communication, transportation, faculty and staff recruitment, accreditation, differences
in student outcomes, expense, and a variety of program- and site-specific
issues.
Suggestions
Although many schools and institutions
have similar methods of communication and curriculum transmission, there are
numerous differences in overall program delivery, indicating a need for
education, guidelines, policies and information dissemination on the topic. The
prevalence of multi-campus programs is likely to expand over the next several
years, as schools and institutions strive to make better use of resources,
expand class sizes, and better serve their region.
Uganda
National Association of Private Schools and Institutions
www.ugandaprivateschools.blogspot.com
