Parents question 476 million VND to buy TV, what does the principal say?

Parents of students at a high school questioned the plan to raise about 1.8 billion VND in funding, of which about 476 million VND (more than 26%) was used to buy televisions… How did the principal explain?

The school is developing a fundraising plan to seek the opinion of the Department of Education and Training.

SCREENSHOT

Reflecting to Thanh Nien Newspaper, a parent of a 10th grade student at Nguyen Khuyen High School (Hoa Hung Ward, Ho Chi Minh City) said: "The other day, at the first parent-teacher meeting of the year, the homeroom teacher presented that the school needed support for rewards, facilities... with a total value of 1,815,000 VND. Divided among 2,300 students, that is 800,000 VND/student/year, which is 400,000 VND/student/semester. Of the above 1.8 billion VND, I found that 476 million VND was spent on buying TVs (accounting for more than 26%)... Please help Thanh Nien Newspaper reflect on this for us parents."

In response to the above information, Mr. Cao Minh Quy, Principal of Nguyen Khuyen High School, said that during the school-wide parent-teacher meeting at the end of September, the school submitted a draft plan to mobilize funding for the 2025-2026 school year to seek opinions from parents.

Mr. Quy said that the school presented the draft at the first parent-teacher meeting of the year with the following contents:

Currently, 28 classrooms in Area A of the school are using old 50-inch TVs, installed 14 years ago, which are now degraded. Because of the blackboard, the TVs have to be hung high up, causing students sitting nearby to have to look up, causing neck strain, while students sitting far away cannot see clearly.

Therefore, Mr. Quy said, the school has consulted prices and plans to install TV systems and sliding boards for the classrooms.

Specifically, 75-inch TV: Estimated price 17 million/TV x 28 rooms = 476 million; Sliding board: According to the design, the TV will be placed in the center of the board and at the eye level of the students. Therefore, it is necessary to redesign the frame and box for the board (2 panels) to move to the 2 sides when using the TV, when not using the TV, the teacher pulls the board back to write or combine the board and TV.

The principal of Nguyen Khuyen School said that according to the minutes, the classes were 100% in agreement and the viewpoint was to implement the sponsorship principles correctly, absolutely without coercion. According to the process of building a sponsorship mobilization plan stipulated in Circular 16, after receiving consensus, the school completed the plan and submitted it to the Department of Education and Training. After being approved by the Department, the school proceeded to mobilize sponsorship, according to the principle of voluntariness, without coercion and without equalization.

From there, according to the affirmation of the head of Nguyen Khuyen High School: "This is a sponsorship campaign, the school does not make an average. The school's policy is to mobilize parents, sponsors, businesses, and philanthropists with little to sponsor less, with many to sponsor more and to have full accounting with a public and transparent viewpoint. This is a sponsorship whose beneficiaries are students, the school does not equalize. Currently, the school also has no announcement requiring parents to pay this amount. After the Department of Education and Training approves, the school will send an open letter to sponsors, businesses, and philanthropists to mobilize."

In addition, Mr. Quy also expressed that the school leaders are willing to listen to opinions and explain specifically so that parents can understand the school's policies and viewpoints on implementing the school's advocacy plan.

Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training regulates the principal's responsibility for school revenues and fundraising.

PHOTO: DAO NGOC THACH

Principal's responsibilities when raising funds

Regarding the development of a plan to mobilize funding in educational institutions, at the beginning of the new school year, the Department of Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City requires schools to develop content and plans to mobilize funding based on clearly defining the purpose, beneficiaries, methods of organization and implementation, implementation progress and responsibility for the quality of activities, quality of products and works with detailed estimates in accordance with current regulations on standards and norms.

Schools can only mobilize funding after receiving an official document approving the implementation plan from the Department of Education and Training.

According to the Department of Education and Training of Ho Chi Minh City, when receiving financial sponsorship, schools must approve the sponsorship receipt, create a receipt, open a detailed accounting book to separately track the sponsored amount; open an additional account at a bank or the State Treasury to receive the transferred sponsorship and record it in the accounting system according to regulations.

In particular, the Department of Education and Training notes that schools are not allowed to set average funding levels.

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training emphasized that school principals are responsible before the law for mobilizing, receiving, managing and using sponsorships. Coordinate with sponsors to effectively organize and implement sponsorship activities for educational institutions. Proactively propose to sponsors the order of priority tasks in using sponsorships to improve school facilities, support teaching and learning activities, and educational activities in accordance with the development plan of the educational institution.

Organize acceptance and receipt of products and works carried out by sponsors in accordance with legal regulations and be responsible for management, maintenance and repair to ensure that products and works are used effectively and for the right purposes.

The principal is responsible for reporting to the superior management unit on the situation of mobilizing, receiving, managing and using funding after completing the implementation of the mobilization plan.

Responsible for reporting and explaining to units with functions of monitoring, checking and inspecting the management and use of funding at educational institutions if requested.

Responsible for explaining and answering questions (if any) from officials, teachers, staff, students, parents and sponsors in receiving, managing and using sponsorship.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/phu-huynh-thac-mac-ve-476-trieu-dong-mua-tivi-hieu-truong-noi-gi-185251005225234584.htm