Lacor Secondary School was founded in 1988 by parents and independent donors in the area. Their desire was to create a good educational environment while providing a safe place to keep their children from getting abducted by the LRA. Tragically, in 1996, the school was attacked by the LRA and 23 students were abducted and enrollment drastically declined as a result. There are now 128 total students attending Lacor, less than 5% of whom have received psychosocial counseling. The student-book ratio is as poor as 9:1 at some grade levels. Students read an average of only two books a year and approximately 11% of students are held back every year. Malaria and other health issues are common at the school. Before Schools for Schools began, Lacor’s only building had four classrooms in it and was uncompleted due to lack of funding. The walls had not been plastered or painted, the floor was poorly constructed and the cement was coming up in several of the classrooms.

As a result of the S4S program, we have been able to build a new dual classroom block, refurbish the four classrooms and administration block, and provide adequate furniture for all classrooms. Two six-stance latrine units have been completed and the only borehole is back in working order. We have also invested in a two-story girls’ dormitory because many of the students are forced to stay in expensive local hostels. The first phase was completed using Round II funds and work is underway to complete the ground floor.

We have begun to address the school’s top priorities by getting a limited supply of core texts and teachers’ supplies in the main compulsory subjects. Basic laboratory equipment has been provided, but there is still much to be done to bring the students up to the national standard. We have been able to assist the staff through teacher trainings, psychosocial support for guidance counselors, along with financial management, record keeping and computer literacy trainings.

We hope to complete the girls’ dormitory, provide additional latrines to improve sanitation, add a new borehole for drinking water and begin installation of motorized water system with Round IV funds. In addition to these projects, we will continue to provide text and reference books, teacher training materials and guidance counseling curriculum development.