About FHCS

1.            INTRODUCTION

Faith-Hill Community School Ltd (FHCS) is an ongoing entity with over 500 students and a staff of over 40 teachers and administrators. It was originally started and registered as the educational component of a Non-governmental organization (NGO), Social Development Initiatives (SDI, a local NGO committed to poverty alleviation through provision of quality education & health, social and entrepreneurial development of women and youth) and registered with the Ghana Education Service to provide educational services at the pre-school, basic and junior high levels.

The educational component of the NGO was subsequently separated from the mother NGO and run as a private entity. It is now fully registered as a limited liability company with certificate to commence business as of November 2010. The school now operates under the name Faith Hill Community School Ltd. The Founders and Shareholders of the school under the new entity are Dr. Andrew Seidu Korkor and Dr. (Mrs). Eunice Torto-Seidu.  

Mission Statement

•  to partner with families in developing, through the power of God and our dedicated, hardworking administration and staff, pre-school through to junior high school students by:

being a model of Christian education and character development that is designed to raise a generation of children committed to God, family, nation and the development of the world;

•     to train a generation of leaders, better equipped to walk in the character and maturity required to make an impact in our region and the world.

Our History

Conceived in 1996 and founded in 2004, Faith-Hill Community School brings distinctive, Christian education to the Northern Region of Ghana. Dr. (Mrs.) Eunice Torto-Seidu (PhD) and Dr. (Med) Andrew Seidu Korkor founded the school in order to build a Christ-centred model for the region. 

The school has a vibrant P.T.A. in place. It is currently temporarily accommodated at U230 North High Street and the new Northern campus just two minutes’ walk away at U280 Norrip Village, Tamale, where our permanent school complex structure is on-going. 

Management

As an NGO, the school was under the direct administration of Mrs. Eunice Torto-Seidu as the Headmistress and supported by an Assistant Headteacher, Administrator and Accountant with a Senior Educationist as an Academic Advisor. With the separation of the educational component of from the NGO and subsequent transformation into a limited liability company, the management of the school has been re-structured as follows:

A.   SCHOOL BOARD (BOARD OF DIRECTORS)

The Board of Directors (BOD) is made up of shareholding and non-shareholding directors. They collectively have legal responsibilities to fulfil as well as ensuring that the shareholding directors get a proper return on investment. The Board would set clear policies and monitor implementation on a regular basis. The BODs consists of:

a.    Shareholding Directors

b.     Non-shareholding members (Advisory)

c.    The Managing Director/Executive Director (Operations)

i.          Shareholding Directors

These are the founders and members who have invested in the school. They are the registered owners of the entity. Dr. Andrew Seidu Korkor is the President with Mrs. Eunice Torto-Seidu as the Vice-President. These, together with the non-shareholding members (Advisory) and the Managing Director, constitute the Board of Directors (BODs).

ii.         Advisory Members

In addition to the Directors of the school, other members, where necessary, shall be drawn from the Ghana Education Service, Department of Social Welfare and other persons as may be needed, whose experience may be brought to bear on the successful growth of Faith-Hill Community School. They are not shareholders and shall serve in an advisory capacity only.

The Advisory members of the Board would provide advisory services to the Directors (shareholding) on the general direction and policy, as well as towards improving management and performance of the school. Their role is to perform the functions of a board, without executive powers to enforce decisions. Though they may have contact with management, their role interfaces with the Directors, who may then choose to implement what they advise or not.

B.   MANAGEMENT TEAM

There shall be a management team that will manage the day-to-day administration of the school. It shall consist of the Managing Director as the leader, the Headteacher, the Administrator (General Manager) and the heads of the various departments:

1.    Managing/Executive Director

2.    Head Teacher/Principal

3.    General Manager/Administrator

4.    Finance Manager/Accountant

5.    Heads of Departments

i.          The Managing Director/Executive Director (MD/ExeD)

This is a full time position. The MD is a member (non-shareholding) of the BOD who is responsible for day-to-day operations of the school. S/he would normally be an entrepreneur. Otherwise, an educationist at the senior level (e.g. Asst. Director or higher), with considerable experience in school administration and academic affairs will do. It is the role of MD to assess both HM and GM. S/he shall report to the Board.

ii.         The Headteacher/Principal

The Head teacher is responsible for all academic affairs, including monitoring and supervision of teachers. Preferably an educationist at the senior level, with considerable experience in school administration and academic affairs, s/he may also stand in as the Managing Director. S/he reports to the managing director.

iii.       General Manager/Administrator

The General Manager, who may not necessarily be an entrepreneur, shall have the competencies to deal with Human Resources, Financial and Administrative matters. If one can find /afford an entrepreneur to play that role that will be excellent. The important thing is for the GM to have the competencies to deal with HR, Financial and Administrative matters. S/he shall report to the MD.

iv.        Financial Manager

The Finance Manager shall have the competencies to deal with financial matters. If one can find /afford an entrepreneur to play that role that will be excellent. The important thing is for the GM to have the competencies to deal with HR, Financial and Administrative matters. S/he shall report to the MD.

v.         Heads of Departments

These are assistants to the heads of the main divisions, namely Administrative Assistant, Finance Assistant and Heads of the Pre-school, Infant School, Junior School and Junior High School.

C.   PARENT TEACHER ASSOCIATION (PTA)

There is a strong PTA with its own constitution and guidelines. It has Development and Educational sub-committees. The Association and its sub-committees assist/ advise the Board and the Management Team on pertinent issues to promote cordiality between the school directors, management, the pupils and the parents. The PTA chairman may be nominated as non-shareholding (Advisory) member of the Board of Directors.

The functional relationships between these structures can be found in the Organogram attached in the Annex 1.

Academics

The selection of a school should not only rest on the training in character that children will receive, but also the disciplines that they will be trained in. In addition to the foundations established through the study of the Word of God, FHCS students

are taught in several primary disciplines including Literature, English & Grammar, Math, Creative Arts & Science and French. Character Development and Femininity and Masculinity are integrated into the curriculum.

Academic Facilities

These are still limited and consist of a modest library. There are only few volumes of reference books for both pupils and teachers; starting with only four used desktop computers, the school can now boast of 10 computers, albeit used ones. We have just subscribed to internet services through Vodafone Broadband services. However, access to the internet and email is still limited due to frequent technical problems from the service provider and subscription costs for a relatively young and newly emerging school with limited resources.

Infrastructure

The Pre-school is temporarily accommodated at No 58 Norrip Village, Tamale (a rented private residential property on lease, originally for ten years, and currently extended until the permanent compound is constructed.  since its . A new 12-classroom permanent structure is being put up on Plot 66 Norrip Village, to accommodate all classes. It currently houses the Basic school (Primary and JSS Departments, now re-designated Basic classes 1 to 9) under the new GES reforms. It is envisaged to develop this compound to also accommodate a library & resource centre, ICT centre, and administration block.

Academics

All of our academic programs are designed to meet and exceed G.E.S guidelines for curriculum and content and creativity. We aim to build an all rounded student using a combination of the best of the old school with modern teaching methods. We do not only use Ghanaian curriculum materials, but also international materials that have relevance to our national program, as well as prepare children to better appreciate the world as a global village.

The selection of a school should not only rest on the training in character that children will receive, but also the disciplines that they will be trained in. In addition to the foundations established through the study of the Word of God, Faith-Hill Community School students are taught in several primary disciplines including: Literature, English & Grammar, Math, Creative Arts & Science and French. Character Development, Femininity and Masculinity are integrated into the curriculum.

Classes

Started in September 2004 with a total population of less than 35 in classes up to primary 3, the school now has a population of 500-plus in four departments: Pre-school, Infant School & Junior School (Primary School) and Junior High School.  The Pre-school has children between 18 months – 6 years grouped into 4 classes: Tiny Tots, Nursery, Kindergartens 1 & 2; infant and Junior Schools constitute the Primary school with classes ranging from 1st – 6th grade.  The Junior high school was established in September 2008 and now has a total enrolment of over 67 in JH1, JH2 and JH3

Staff

Currently the school has staff strength of about 44, comprising 36 full-time staff (Academic & Administration) and 8 part-time staff. We have also been receiving volunteer teachers and National Service Persons for periods between 3 months to 1 year.

Academic Facilities

These are still limited and consist of a modest library and a recently refurbished computer room. There are only few volumes of reference books for both pupils and teachers. There are currently ten used desktops, recently connected to Ghana Telecom (GT) Broadband. Access to the net and email is not reliable due to frequent technical problems from the service provider and high subscription costs for a relatively young and newly emerging school with limited resources.