New School in Sierra Leone

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(Top) Early arrivals at the new building sit and wait for the dedication ceremony. (Bottom) The old school building contrasts sharply with the improved building.
By Phileas Jusu
July 2, 2015 | MILE 91, Sierra Leone (UMNS)

A new building is always cause for celebration, but the celebration is louder and more emotional when the new building revives the dignity and pride of a school.
The new $98,000, six-classroom building for United Methodist Primary School at Mile 91, in northern Sierra Leone, replaces an unsafe building that had collapsing bricks on one side. Parts of the roof had been blown off in a storm.
“This building is a manifestation that when we and our partners work together, a quality result is achieved,” said the Rev. Elizabeth Kamara, United Methodist Yonibana district superintendent.
She said she still hopes the school can get a library, since the children’s reading standards are still low.
Enrollment at the school, once more than 300, had dropped to less than 30 by 2014, as parents withdrew children in droves, said Joseph Pormai, Sierra Leone Conference’s education secretary for secondary schools.