SWOT Analysis of St. Austin Primary School - Essay Example

SWOT Analysis of St. Austin Primary School of the of Submitted A brief Background of St. Austin Primary School St Austin primary school was founded in 1979. It is located on Santa Clara County in California. It was started by Father Austin, a catholic missionary. St. Austin is a boy’s boarding school. It has a population of 300 students and fifteen teaching staff. The non-teaching staff amounts to eleven in total. It is a private school ran by the Roman Catholic Church in San Francisco Bay Area. The first administrator was the founder, Father Austin. He ran it from 1979 till his death in 1989. The current principal is Father Francis, who has been running the school from the year 2005. He is assisted by Sister Clara, who has been around since the year 2006. The school is located in a rural setting. It stands on a field of fifty acres. There are agricultural projects by the students who have put almost ten acres under cultivation. A chapel stands on the school compound. It is run by the Catholic Church and serves both the students and the surrounding community. The school has posted an excellent performance academically since its inception. It has continued to provide quality education to the young men in our society, molding them to be better citizens. This has been achieved through a combination of loving care and high discipline. The school has also faced some problems. This SWOT analysis will look at our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strengths of St. Austin Primary School Russell (2007: 23) says that strengths of an organization are its strong points. These strengths come from the internal dynamics of the organization. It is what gives the organization an edge in the competition with others in the field. The strengths of St. Austin are the internal factors that make this school better than the rest in Santa Clara County. Here are some of those factors; The teachers are highly trained and qualified professionals in their fields. All of our teachers are diploma holders from accredited teachers training institutions. This ensures that the education they give the students is of high quality. The school is located in a country setting. This ensures that there it is a conducive environment. This is for the students to learn. There is no disruption from traffics that is generally experienced in a city setting. The school has a large compound of fifty acres. This ensures that there is always space for the student to carry out extra curricula activities. We recognize these are very important for the positive development of a child. There are large tracts of land for fields. There is no congestion The non-teaching staff is qualified professionals in their respective fields. The resident doctor is a graduate of John Hopkins Teaching Hospital. The cooks and the other clerical staff are also trained in their jobs. The school is run on the basis of the Roman Catholic faith. The children are brought up in a religious setting and in faith. This is important for their spiritual growth. There is also a chapel on the school property that ensures that faith nourishment is provided. This is supported by the local school chaplain. The neighbors around the school are very supportive of our institution. We enjoy a good relationship with our neighbors and this ensures that we give the children a chance to grow around a positive community. The school enjoys a good relationship not only with the neighbors but also with the school stakeholders. Periodic audience between the school administration and the students ensures that problems are solved as soon as they arise. There are periodical meetings between the teachers and the parents and this ensures that the two parties act in a synchronized manner as far as bringing up the child is concerned. There are parent days once per year where the students, teacher and students come together. The school possesses a lengthy history, been in existence for thirty years now. This means that the school has laid down infrastructures as far as education provision is concerned. It has a fully stocked library and laboratories. It also has a powerful network of alumni. These are prominent people in the society and provide inspiration to our student and staff. Weaknesses of the School Weaknesses of an organization are the internal factors that hinder the development of the organization (Irwin, 2008: 34). It is very hard sometimes for an organization to admit its shortcomings. But this is very important if the organization is to go ahead (Linda, 2005: 57). The following are some of the weaknesses of our organization: Since the school is located in such an expanse piece of land, it is easier for the students to sneak to the woods. There have been reported cases of students sneaking to the woods to smoke. Such a large property is hard to secure. This poses a risk to the safety of the students. Gypsies have sneaked and set camps at the far ends of the woods. The school is very expensive, it been a private enterprise. This locks out students that deserved an opportunity to study at our school since they cannot meet the costs. The school is said to be rigid as far as religion goes. It is run exclusive on Roman Catholic principles. This alienates students of other faiths like Muslim and Protestants. Been a boys’ only boarding school, discipline is hard to maintain. There have been reported cases of the boys harassing female members of staff. Homosexual activities have been cited amongst the students. The school has been in existence for a period of thirty years. Due to this, it finds it very hard to deviate from its tradition and embrace new ways of life. It is accused of still running the business of education the old school way. It has a long and inefficient bureaucratic system. Before a decision is made, the local parish has to be consulted first. The local parish then calls a parish council meeting to deliberate on the matter. This has made it really hard to make urgent and important decisions. Opportunities of the School An organization should determine the ways that are available for it to grow (Sandra, 2009:78). Opportunities are the external factors that can help the organization to grow if utilized (Irwin, 2008: 56). The following are the opportunities of our school: The school has a very big tract of land. It can use this land for expansion. This land is enough to construct a girls’ boarding school or a boys’ high school. The school possesses big and influential alumni base. It can utilize the influence and experience of this people to further itself. The school enjoys a good reputation around the academic circles. It can make use of this reputation to attract more students and to higher the level of the education still. The school is located near the Silicon Valley. As such, it can make use of this cradle of technology to make sure that the students are well acquainted with technological advances before they leave the school. This the school can achieve by entering into partnerships with the research firms from the Silicon Valley. Unlike in the previous years, the society now recognizes the need for a good education. This has come with the recognition that private schools provide some of the best students around. Thus people will be attracted to St. Austin, it being a reputable private institution. There has been a reported decline in the quality of education. This is mainly that provided by the public schools. This has meant that parents have less trust in public education and values education from private schools more. This has put our school at a strategic possession to receive those students transferring from public primary schools. Threats to St. Austin’s Primary School Threats are external factors beyond the control of the organization (Linda, 2005: 45). Nevertheless, they affect the growth of the organization negatively. We must identify and deal with them to move forward (Russell, 2007: 67). These are some of our threats: There has been a rise in the number of private schools offering quality education. This has led to the loss of some of our best students to these schools. The current economic crisis has meant that the cost of running the school has gone up. This has led to an increase in the fees since the parents have to shoulder the larger cost. This has led to the deterioration of the relationship between the school administration and the parents. The security of boarding schools has suffered a threat that has seen the increased rates of violence in boarding schools. As a result, parents now prefer to take their children to a day school that they consider to be relatively safe. Reference List Irwin, E. 2008. Importance of a SWOT analysis. 2nd Edition. Denver. Mitchell Graw. Linda, S. 2005. Aspects of a good SWOT analysis. 1st Edition. London. Russell Books. Russell, D. 2007. Components of an organization’s growth plan. Massachusetts. Dawood. Sandra, R. 2009. Strategic plan. Nebraska. Willy and John. Read More