Homework

At La Salle Green Hills, there is no conflict in running the school like a good business.

"We do our planning way ahead. Nothing is left to chance," said LSGH president Bro. Bernard Oca, FSC.

Aside from having a solid board of trustees, which currently include Globe Telecom president and chief executive officer Gerardo Ablaza, Jr. and Bank of the Philippine Islands vice-president for bancassurance Emmanuel Herbosa, LSGH also has financial advisers, most of whom are alumni.

"Their advice is always appreciated," said Bro. Oca, who recalled a time shortly before the Asian financial crisis when the school’s board and management discussed getting some loans for the school. "It was tempting to borrow in dollars because it was easy to access and may earn profits for La Salle. However, our financial advisers countered that borrowing in dollars also carried more risk because we were not earning in dollars. At the end of the day, we decided that money was not really our end-game and we borrowed in pesos. What a relief that we got the right advice and followed through with the right decision after the regional financial crisis set in."

Good business practice also means effective systems control in purchasing, warehousing, and accounting. This is done through an internal auditor who periodically checks and suggests improvements on the system. For example, the school already knows before the school year ends how many school items and uniforms are needed for the following school year.

"Such controls in place have saved the school precious man-hours and have eliminated any chance of unethical behavior in purchasing," said Bro. Oca.

Prudence

LSGH, which has a student population of 5,400, is part of the La Salle System in the Philippines. It is managed by the Christian Brothers, a religious order founded by St. Jean Baptiste de la Salle, the patron saint of teachers.

Out of its total revenues generated from tuition annually, 70% is set aside for the salaries and non-monetary benefits of faculty and staff. The balance goes to physical infrastructures and improvements. For example, each classroom is equipped with a television set and VHS player and an internet-ready computer.

Additional funds are raised from alumni to support scholars, in keeping with the primary goal of St. Jean Baptiste, a member of the French aristocracy, to give the poor the same kind of education as the rich. By 2008, LSGH targets that 20% of its student population will be scholars.

Unique to LSGH is a subsidized adult night school for domestic helpers and drivers of alumni who wish to get a high school diploma. The night school has the same curriculum and standards as the regular LSGH high school.

"We have to be prudent about our finances as we know that whatever tuition are paid to us are hard-earned money by the parents of our students," said Bro. Oca, who sees parents as co-partners in the education of its students.

Because of regular whole-day workshops with parents, the school has come up with a "learner center learning environment", a paradigm shift from the traditional teacher-student relationship. This method is applied in grade school where students are given modules in the computer laboratory. In pairs, students research on a certain topic in the internet. Later, they are asked to express in different ways such as an essay or a drawing what they have learned.

"It has become the favorite subject of many students. It has made learning fun because there are no restrictions on their expression of what they have just learned," said Bro. Oca, president of La Salle Green Hills.