By Stanley Ove Jr – EM TV News, Port Moresby
Situated on the fringes of the famous Lake Kutubu is Kutubu Secondary School. One of the longest serving education institutes in the Nipa-Kutubu District of Southern Highlands Province that was given secondary school status this year.
The school was established over 40 years ago as a high school, when explorers first came to Kutubu in search of oil and gas.
Unlike other schools in Southern Highlands Province, Kutubu Secondary is a rural secondary school. It caters for children from all corners of Nipa-Kutubu, and neighbouring districts such as those from Hela Province.
The start of the 2015 academic year was not good for Kutubu Secondary. Head Teacher, Bai Irabo, said the school faced countless problems, with finance being the main one.
“The government’s TFF did not sustain us well throughout the year. We had setbacks in the middle of the year,” Irabo said.
The school was understaffed, with only 20 of the 35 teaching positions filled by teachers.
“We did not have enough teachers, but the commitment my staff has shown this year has been outstanding,” Irabo said.
Despite the challenges and problems, the school managed to pass over 76 Grade 12 students yesterday.
“This is a historical event for Kutubu, as we managed to operate throughout the year and I am happy to see all my pioneer students sitting here to graduate,” Irabo said.
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