REPORT ON THE MONTHS OF JUNE AND JULY - By Pastor Herbert of Kamuli Baptist Church
Enrollment: This term all the children returned and some were added to the number. The school has thirty (30) children up from the sixteen we have been having for the last two terms.
Staff: There is a full time administrator at school that helps fill in the vacuum since the executive director of the Kamuli Christian Centre for the Deaf is not always at the school because of several other duties she has to fulfil. She has been a member of staff and was just appointed recently to lead others. She is Jennifer Namugabo. She is now the Headmistress of the school. Pray for her especially in her new duties.
We had an additional teaching staff member who is deaf: Haggira. She is quite active and is teaching fellow deaf children the sign language, helping in organizing them, offering general leadership as a fellow deaf person. Because of the increased number of children, we had to employ a young man to help in cooking food since this requires a lot of energy.
Health: Most of the children have been healthy. A few cases of sick children have been registered with malaria taking a major toll.
Food: The food has been sufficient due to the donation we received from Mission link International. However, since it not very big we cannot afford animal protein in the diet. We have learnt to live within our means.
Challenges: The major challenge is for the school lacks permanent buildings. In Uganda, the ministry of Education and Sports requires that a school has at least one permanent structure built in brick and cement. The temporary structures can support the permanent building. The school only has a temporary structure and this has already put us at loggerheads with the ministry, and we could face closure. We need your prayer in this urgent area, if there is to be a continuation of the school. The ministry is implementing the government White Paper which has been lying dormant for some time. The recent reshuffle in ministers brought Uganda’s first lady into this ministry and she is effecting many changes and this is one of them.
These deaf children have been neglected, abandoned, and in some cases, rejected by their parents and relatives in the villages and stopping the school means that they have to return to their homes and forfeit their educational advancement.
At the moment we have two alternatives in this area. The first is to erect a two classroom building on the church premises since the church has been gracious to grant us some space. The second and more expensive way is to acquire land and build. In the present and immediate circumstances the first option seems to be of priority to the school’s governing board. The second alternative can come later since it is more expensive and needs time.
The Budget: More than half of the budget has been financed and thanks goes to the Mission Link International for the help that has been rendered for this term as has been in previous terms. This went as far as financing at least half of the budgeted items. Many things had to be eliminated from the budget in order to accommodate full running of the school.
Permanent Home for KCCD:
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REPORT ON THE DEAF UNIT FOR MARCH AND APRIL 2017 - By Pastor Herbert of Kamuli Baptist Church
Kamuli Christian Centre for the Deaf closed on Friday April 28th 2017 and it will reopen on Monday May 29th2017. This means they have one month’s holiday in which to be with their loved ones at home and also rest from the hectic academic program.
No child dropped out of school and the overall performance was encouraging because most of the children indicate there is learning taking place for they had good grades.
This term has not been so difficult since financial pressures were not many. The school received a lot of help from Mission Link International and this enabled in the acquisition of many basic needs. In addition, the staff was motivated to work as they helped the deaf children to learn.
The school is in need of a full time administrator (head teacher) who will permanently be present at the school to fill in an administrative vacuum. That explains the inclusion of a head teacher’s salary. In addition, there is need for a guard to help keep security at the school and prevent petty thefts. The matron is doubling as a cook as well. A nurse comes once a week to check on the health situation of the children.
Challenges:
1. Most of the children do not have school uniform, casual clothing, and shoes. Most of them go to class with torn clothes and they walk bare foot. They are prone to sickness and are exposed to cold conditions.
2. Two children succumbed to malaria in March. These were Edrine Bamukisa, and Nambi. Three teachers also fell sick in these months: Sarah Namugabo, Jennifer Namugabo and Ibrahim Kaima. They received treatment and have recovered.
3. The children do not have a nearby water source. They sometimes have to cross a dangerous road with speeding vehicles to fetch water.
4. Teachers’ salaries have not been paid since February. The school has a salary debt of March and April.
5. The girls do not have a bathroom.
6. There is no filing cabinet to store school records.
Recommendations:
1. Buying school uniform, casual clothes, and shoes for all the children.
2. Getting mosquito nets for children.
3. Connecting water from the nearby source.
4. Paying the salaries for March and April.
5. Building a temporary girls’ bathroom in the holiday.
6. Buying a filing cabinet for proper record keeping.