By Amos Harris
The Ministry of Education in Liberia has reaffirmed its commitment to student safety and institutional accountability by imposing rigorous enforcement measures on St. Theresa Convent Catholic School. This decision follows a comprehensive review of an inappropriate performance held on the school’s campus, which Education Minister Dr. Jarso Maley Jallah identified as a clear violation of established child protection and supervision standards. The Ministry concluded that the event represented a significant breach of the “duty of care” and student safeguarding obligations that all educational institutions across the country are legally required to uphold.
Further complicating the matter, school administrators failed to attend a formally scheduled meeting intended to address the incident and neglected to provide any written justification for their absence. The Ministry characterized this lack of engagement as noncompliant with statutory responsibilities under the Education Reform Act. Consequently, acting within the framework of the Code of Conduct for Liberian Schools, the Ministry has outlined a series of corrective actions designed to address the specific failure at St. Theresa Convent while reinforcing high standards for schools nationwide.
As part of these penalties, the school has been issued a financial fine of 500,000 LRD, which must be settled within fourteen days. In addition to the fine, the school administration is required to initiate mandatory disciplinary proceedings against the specific administrators and teachers responsible for supervising the event, with documented evidence of these actions submitted directly to the Ministry. To prevent similar occurrences in the future, the Ministry has also instituted a nationwide prohibition on the artist known as “Christoph the Change,” banning him from performing at any school-related events for the remainder of the current academic year.
The recovery process for the institution also involves a public admission of fault, requiring a formal apology and a detailed corrective action plan from the school administration. To support the affected students, the Ministry has mandated coordinated counseling sessions and parental engagement programs, which will be facilitated through the Montserrado County Education Office. These measures are intended to provide a structured environment for healing and to ensure that the educational atmosphere remains respectful and conducive to learning.
The Ministry emphasized that these swift actions serve as a broader warning to all educational institutions in Liberia that child protection standards are non-negotiable. By taking decisive administrative and legal steps, the government aims to strengthen public confidence in the national education system. The Ministry’s stance remains clear: any breach of the duty of care will be met with firm consequences, as accountability continues to be the cornerstone of Liberia’s ongoing national education reform efforts.