Remarks Made on the occasion of the inauguration
Musingu High School Old Boys Association
Prof. Kingiri Senelwa
Interim Chairman
Golf Hotel Kakamega
December 3, 2010
The Guest of honour ;chairman, Musingu high school BOG; members of the Board; Members of Parliament ,who are Old Boys of Musingu, in absentia ;and PTA Chairman ;Members of staff ;and above all ,all the Old boys of Musingu, wherever we are3 in the diaspora; the provincial administration the director of education ,and all other officials representing different countries.
· Invited guests ladies and gentlemen.
· I am greatly humbled to be here, among all of us, on this memorable occasion of the inauguration of the old boys association and on the launch of the strategic plan.
· Mine is initially t6o welcome you most sincerely to this occasion the launch and inauguration of musing high school old boys association (alumni) in my capacity as the interim chairman.
· Feel very welcome today and any other day to help us in our efforts to enhance and entrench the standing of Musingu high school in our society and indeed in the development of our beloved county Kenya and as we strive to achieve our national aspirations as spelt out in our vision 2030 and as we embark on implementing the constitutions Ladies and Gentlemen,
· I am informed that to date an estimated 11000 of us have passed through the school in the 46 years history in Musingu.
· Most importantly we are all very proud of having gone through Musingu
· All of us gathered here recognize and appreciate the importance of belonging.
· Now then allow me to note that:
§ Our society is in dire need of an UPLIFT
§ Our school Musingu high is in dire need of an uplift
§ Those of us who have visited Musingu high school recently will have noted with concern I hope that the dormitories classes, the library ,laboratories convenience and sanitation facilities staff quarters ,dinning hall the kitchen etc. that the 10,20,30,40,50 years ago are the same ones still in use ,with hardly any modification, renovation etc.
§ This facilities are stretched to the limit , with a design carrying capacity of 400 students –are now occupied by 1000+ students our children 50+ teachers,100+support staff
§ I am informed some of the facilities are condemned.
· The questions that beg an answer is what can we do about it? As a beneficiary of Musingu, what can I do to help?
Allow me to note further that
· Those who face the unprepared with preparation are victorious’;
· “the plan is nothing .Planning is everything”
- The work that has been undertaken, and therefore the reason/import of these occasion, our being here today ,to launch the strategic plan ,and the alumni can not be over –emphasized;
· The importance of planning in our efforts to enhance our people s welfare; as we strive to meet our vision 2030 goals and importance of education in our daily lives cannot be more apparent than it is now.
- Western Kenya is currently crying. We want good standards in our schools, we want to be counted among the best
- Musingu high school is crying out for good facilities
· All of us indeed the world appreciates the importance of good schools; and the importance of GOOD educational facilities.
- This has been the essence of these meeting.
Ladies and Gentlemen....
· Even with the overstretched facilities at Musingu, we still expect a GOOD
Result.
· Indeed, these problems notwithstanding, the FIRE we lit those many years is
Still GLOWING.
-Academics-there have been impressive returns over the years. Last year
We had some of the best students in the country. We MUST build on
These success.
-Co curricular-the school is competing favourably in many activities
-The staff are among the best you can get in Kenya-the principal for
Instance is a top Principal in Kenya
· We want that FIRE to BURN, and not just GLOW
-We want to be the BEST.
· To be the BEST, we must PLAN and INVEST
-A good Educational Institution and Education requires long term planning
And foresight – decisions made today will impact on our society in the future.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
· All the performing Institutions, Schools etc. are backed up by strong
Societies, Parents, BOGs, PTAs, and hardworking Students and
Teachers.
· We get the best among the best students in the country
· We have some of the best Teachers in Kenya
· We NEED to set-up structures to:
-Mobilize all past Students – the Old Boys, and all friends to
Coalesce around MUSINGU;
-Tell Musingu THANK YOU;
-Mobilize Resources to do something in Musingu
· We have a School Strategic Plan that is being launched today
· WE are Major Stakeholders of Musingu
-As stake holders, we need to look through the Strategic Plan and
Curve out a niche for ourselves
Some thoughts
Concept for
Musingu Old Boys Association ( MOBAS)
Or
Musingu Alumni Society(MAS)
The idea is to build on the Ten Commandments and develop it into a Vision Document for the proposed Musingu Old Boys Association (MOBAS) OR Musingu Alumni Society (MAS).
THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
1.Thou shalt first create a COMPLETE DATABASE
If MUSINGU Alumni is the matter of discussion then each one of the 11000 that we mention is important to us. Let`s first take it as a challenge to build a perfect database with all important attributes with each and every one of our kind.
NOTE: We don`t want to do something now for the 500 odd and then replicate the same effort for the new who join so this becomes paramount.
2.Thou shalt then ORGARNIZE THE DATABASE
The database needs to be then organized WRT the critical attributes such that it becomes easy and effective for all to search for whom we are looking for.
NOTE : Despite unconditional love for the institution, and I feel to cultivate long-term relationships it is important for the like minded to get together.
3. Thou shalt then FORMULATE AN AGENDA
It is important that any entity has a charter and it is extremely important for the Alumni COMMITTEE to create one which will create a 100 unique ways to keep alumni together.
NOTE: If creativity and innovation are our strengths then there is no way we can’t bind all those who once to join alumni to frequently interact and interface each other.
4. Thou shalt INVITE THE SHY
There are many who like to observe the rest communicate probably they are shy or they don’t know what to say or they feel they might not be welcome or simply they feel they cant get anything constructive by being in such a group.
NOTE: This segment usually is more than the majority and I strongly feel that they have to be pulled out of their shells by various pull-based mechanisms.
5. Thou shalt encourage the proactive
There are always among us who are brimming with a kid-like enthusiasm and we need to encourage the efforts of these and reward them too if possible.
NOTE: This will ensure that the person who initiated the activity becomes its owner and can invite a team to help him further. The idea is to grow all that we start.
6 Thou shalt be impartial in approach
The alumni platform should be system-oriented so that it leaves all and their devices to get what they want out of it.
NOTE: But it should also be accessible so that it welcomes one and all to contribute their best to it.
7 Thou shalt reach out
The alumni today has members within diverse demographics and it will definitely prove a grat catalyst if the original chapters welcomes and acts as host to any guests visiting their region.
NOTE; this also includes inviting others for any kind of other activity based groups too. It also includes wishing each and every member on all important days in their lives etc.
8 Thou shalt plan for the future
Though present is godliness, the future has to be planned in advance and one very crucial aspect of this commandment is assisting in building careers of our juniors.
NOTE: the alumni should always plan in advance for each and every batch which might join it so that their journey into the corporate world become s a pleasurable experience. We want to inculcate a sense of belonging.
9 Thou shalt create a calendar
It is important for all members to know about the list of events which are annual or monthly in nature and so that they plan to attend it.
NOTE: The way to do this is by fixing a day of the week when all events will be conducted and informing the dates accordingly by email every year in advance.
10. Thou shalt build a comprehensive platform
Plans never fail, we only fail to plan… when planning a platform for the alumni, we need to create a comprehensive structure based on the 101 step agenda and make it all happen.
NOTE; the platform will form a backbone of all our activities and thus it should be given central focus with a very strong back-end.
Based on the Ten Commandments the
Vision and objectives of the proposed
MUSINGU Alumni Society could be as
Follows:
VISION
To strengthen the alumni relations by Promoting interaction and collaboration
Amongst alumni members, and between
The BOG, PTA, students and MUSINGU
Community.
Objectives
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Acquiring information of each and every alumni.
Enhance inter-alumni interaction & collaboration.
Encourage alumni engagement with Musingu.
promote & project alumni in all Musingu related to activities
Develop sustainable platforms for the above.
Process-centricity of all MAS activities to remove any people dependencies in the future WRT the various entities involved.
The proposed MUSINGU Alumni Society, to objectives its vision and objectives, will develop its relationship with all three concerned entities: Students & Staff, BOG, & PTA AND Alumni
The proposed MUSINGU Alumni Society will constitute members who represent all waves since the existence of MOBAS / MAS and will contribute in the following roles:
Strategy & New Initiatives.
Conceptualizing new initiatives.
Formulating the strategy for successful implementation to achieve the desire impact
Involve o0thers MAS Roles in the alumni.
Branding.
Building the ownership / pride of the Musingu brand amongst its alumni.
Extracting maximum mileage by Musingu branding during key events (both in-media and on-premise)
Conceptualize how the Musingu and MOBAS / MAS brand can assist / benefit both Musingu High School, and the alumni.
Information.
Acquire information of every alumni member.
Regular (periodic) updating of the information.
Organize information according to the various important parameters for most effective use.
Sift through information for identifying alumni members for different MOBAS/MAS roles.
Communication
· Drafting interesting and impactful mails to correspond with alumni for various requirements.
· Latest news and announcements
· Invites for various events.
Organization
· Creating various chapters.
· Organizing alumni according to various chapters.
· Informing alumni of the chapters and all its members.
Mr. Guest of Honour, Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen.
· I have no doubt in my mind that this has been a very fruitful meeting and time well spent. It has allowed us to get incites into the status, the going on in Musingu, and what we must do to move forward.
· As I conclude, allow me Mr. Chairman, to invite you, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, into Musingu Alumni Society, recognizing the fact that planning is a dynamic process, to continually make your views, feelings and thoughts on how we can develop and make Musingu High School a Centre of Excellence .Welcome.
· Finally, allow me to wish each and everyone of you God’s journey mercy, a safe journey back home, and to your respective stations, and above all, a very Merry Christmas, and a prosperous New Year.
With those many remarks Mr. Chairman,
God Bless MUSINGU HIGH SCHOOL
God Bless Musingu Old Boys Association
God Bless you.
Murio Muno. Asande.
Asanteni sana.