Mr. Sylvester Ocaatum launches Teso College Aloet website – May 28th, 2014

I am delighted to witness the creation of the Teso College Aloet website during my tenure as the Head Teacher. On behalf of the entire community of Teso College Aloet (TCA) and the Old Boys (OBs), I sincerely appreciate the effort, time and resources sacrificed by Mr. John Kedi Osire (an Old Boy of Teso College) and his team of volunteers in the creation of our website. I am the 14th Head Teacher of this school since it was founded in 1954. On 1 May 2009, exactly 21 years from the time I was a student in this school, I took over its management from Mr. James Akabwai, who was going into retirement.

I have had opportunities to work in different categories of secondary schools: an ‘A’ Level Girls Boarding Secondary School (Iganga S.S.), an ‘A’ Level Day Mixed Secondary School (Amuria S.S.) and now an ‘A’ Level Boys Boarding Secondary School. This has given me a wider perspective on the behavioural tendencies, ambitions, aspirations and shortcomings of students and teaching staff in different school settings.

In the 1970s, the school enrollment was at about 650 students, compared to the 1,544 students boarding at the school now. Similarly, the total number of both teaching and non-teaching staff (including support staff) has increased from a workforce of about 80 to 180. In all, I have about 1,744 people under my management. Certainly, this is a big number with which to reckon in a school organization.

It is so exciting to be the Head Teacher of the school I once attended! I was a student from 1975 to 1978, and was a resident of Epaku House. As an Old Boy of the school, I intend to lead us to greater heights in all aspects. I believe this can be achieved through teamwork and through coordination with all the stakeholders. It’s our hope that the website will inspire Old Boys in particular to contribute to the development of the school that made them what they are today.

Prior to my transfer to TCA as a Head Teacher, I held administrative posts in Amuria Secondary School and Iganga Secondary School as the Head Teacher and Deputy Head Teacher, respectively. I spent 8 years in Amuria S.S. and 11 years in Iganga S.S., serving 6 years as Deputy Head Teacher and 5 years as Director of Studies.

Teso College Aloet is a unique Secondary School in Uganda for a number of reasons. It stands on two wings, east and west, across Soroti-Moroto Road, code named the “Equator” by students. Each wing is semi-independent with its own facilities: classrooms, laboratories, dining hall, kitchen and kitchen staff, dormitories, staff room, Administrator’s office and others.

The west wing, with an enrollment of 614 students, is for Seniors One and Two. The east wing, with an enrollment of 930 students, is for Seniors Three, Four, Five and Six. The teachers operate in both wings.

The distance between the Administrator’s office in the west wing and the Head Teachers’ office in the east wing is about one km, illustrating the vastness of the compound of this great school. In view of the school’s two wings and the large number of students, I sometimes consider myself as the only Head Teacher of “two schools in one.”

Given the uniqueness of this school, a high level of coordination and a strong administrative network is required for its effective and efficient management. It is stratified in such a way that the Head Teacher is at the top and under him are two Deputy Head Teachers, one for each wing. Assistant Head Teachers assist the Deputies in the management of the wings. There is a Director of Studies based in east wing and an Assistant Director of Studies for west wing. Under the Director of Studies are the Heads of Department, House teachers, Class teachers, Patrons of various clubs and students’ leadership.

In academics, the school is performing well in the Uganda Certificate of Education (U.C.E.) and Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (U.A.C.E.) examinations. We highly appreciate the role played by both the teaching and non-teaching staff in our achievements so far. Please get the details of our academic position from this website.

Every effort is being made to ensure that extracurricular activities are vibrant in the school. The extra-curricular committee is in place to ensure that students are given the opportunity to develop their talents. The students are active in football, volleyball, basketball, rugby, and table tennis. Plans are underway to improve the facilities for these games. There are also club activities such as Wildlife Sanitation and Environment, Scripture Union, Young Catholic Students (YCS), Scouts, Presidential Initiative on Aids Strategy for Communication to the Youth (PIASCY), Mathematics, Writers Club and Debating.

Other stakeholders are crucial in the progress and success of a school. Our gratitude goes out to the government of Uganda through the Ministry of Education and Sports, the Board of Governors, the Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) Executive Committee, the Soroti Local Government Authorities, parents and guardians. We thank them for the concerted efforts they are making to ensure that the school sustains the upward trend in the revival of its once lost glories.