Fiaseman SHS makes steady progress

Story: Kwame Asiedu Marfo, Tarkwa 
April 2
THE Fiaseman Senior High School (SHS) at Tarkwa in the Western Region, a co-educational second-cycle institution, was founded 53 years ago as a private commercial school.
The school, which was founded on a solid academic excellence and discipline, was absorbed into the public system in 1974.
The age of the school is, however, not commensurate with its physical development. From a disadvantaged beginning as a private school in rented premises, its infrastructure, especially classrooms and residential accommodation, still remain woefully inadequate.
However, by dint of hard work and the desire to help itself, the school has made some progress.
According to the Headmaster of the school, Mr R.D. Ainoo, enrolment has progressively increased from 710 in 2001 to 1,250 currently while the teaching staff has increased from 30 to 54.
Academic performance has also shown steady improvement and percentage pass chalked up had been consistently 99 per cent over the last three years, he said, adding, “One of the students scored five A’s in the latest West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSE).”
Mr Ainoo said with the support of the government, the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA), the Wassa West District Assembly and the Old Students Association, infrastructure had improved considerably to keep pace with the increase in the population of the school.
Through the support of the PTA, Mr Ainoo said the school could boast one-storey jubilee block for the Home Economics Department, a school clinic, the construction of a well fitted with hand pump, as well as two flats for staff.
With support from the former Board of Governors of the school, the PTA has acquired a new bus, which has facilitated educational trips and enhanced movement of teachers to and from school.
According to the headmaster, the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipal  Assembly had provided a junior staff bungalow and 100 laboratory chairs to the school, while the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) had constructed an eight-unit classroom block for the school.
Mr Ainoo stated that through the assistance of the government, one staff bungalow had been completed, while the school, from its own internally generated resources, had built a volley court.
Through that intervention, a new girls’ dormitory block under construction was almost completed, he said, adding that the classroom blocks were also painted every two years.
Conspicuously absent towards the development of the school is the contribution of the Wassa Fiase Traditional Council, even though the school was named after the traditional authority.
In spite of the school’s modest achievements, it is facing some  challenges, which include accommodation for the teaching staff, an administration block, as well as dining/ assembly hall.
“Can anybody imagine that a school with a population of over 1,200 and  54 teachers, as well as 40 workers, has no administration block?” He questioned.
The headmaster noted with regret that the construction of the administration block had been ongoing since 1996, adding, ”For bout 12 solid years, there is no end in sight.”
He said classrooms, which were in short supply, had been turned into offices, adding that numerous appeals for assistance in that respect had not yielded the needed dividend.
“The greatest problem is the dining/assembly hall complex, which is in total ruins. The building could collapse at any time and I am very much afraid for my students and the kitchen staff,” Mr Ainoo stated.
He said as a result of the slow physical expansion at the school, there was a serious encroachment on the school land by the neighbouring village.
The headmaster appealed to the traditional authorities to do their best to stop the encroachment.