LOCAL NEWS
GRAND BASSA COUNTY – For Richard C. Myumah, the renovation of the Wuarzon Elementary Public School is more than a construction project—it is the restoration of a place that has shaped his life and where he has devoted nearly two decades to educating children in his community.
By: Trokon S. Wrepue – trokon1992seokin@gmail.com
Myumah, the school’s registrar, was born and raised in Wuarzon and was himself a student at the school, which was established in 1982. After completing his education, he returned to serve the same institution, joining the school as a volunteer in 2008.
Nearly 18 years later, he remains committed to teaching despite receiving no salary from the Liberian Government.
“My teacher put in my head is what I am giving back to the community,” Myumah said, explaining his decision to remain at the school despite repeated encouragement from friends to pursue other opportunities.
According to him, the school currently depends heavily on volunteer teachers because of inadequate government staffing. Of the teachers serving at the public school, three are volunteers, including Myumah.
For the school community, however, the situation is beginning to change following an intervention by the Liberian Agricultural Company (LAC), which has commenced the renovation of the deteriorating school facility.
Myumah welcomed the initiative, describing LAC’s intervention as a major relief for a community that has struggled for years to maintain the institution.
He recalled that the school was originally a mud structure before LAC intervened between 2005 and 2007 to construct a concrete school building, which was subsequently turned over to the Government through the Ministry of Education.
“Great thanks to LAC,” Myumah said, noting that the community had repeatedly appealed for assistance as the school deteriorated.
The Wuarzon Town community is located only a short distance from the main entrance of LAC’s operational area in Grand Bassa County’s Fourth Electoral District, making the school one of the community institutions within the company’s surrounding operational environment.
Over the years, the school building has suffered significant deterioration, including damaged chairs, broken windows and doors, as well as a leaking roof, creating difficult conditions for students and teachers.
The latest renovation effort is therefore being viewed by residents as an important step toward restoring a safer and more conducive learning environment for children in Wuarzon and surrounding communities.
K. Philip Zeon, Senior Advisor for Wuarzon Town, expressed appreciation to LAC for once again responding to the community’s concerns.
“The renovation of this school is good. We give LAC many thanks because they were the same people that built it for us more than 20 years ago,” Zeon said.
He explained that although the facility was eventually turned over to the government, the community saw little subsequent renovation or maintenance, leaving residents once again seeking outside support.
Zeon said the community appealed to LAC after the school’s condition became increasingly difficult, and the company has now responded by mobilizing construction materials and beginning preparations for the rehabilitation work.
“We are again crying on the Liberian Agricultural Company to help again, and they have come,” he said, pointing to materials, including sand and cement, already brought to the site.
For Wuarzon residents, the school represents more than a building. It is an institution established through the efforts of their forefathers and one that has served generations of children in the community.
Zeon said the community struggled to maintain the school because of limited resources and a shortage of government-paid teachers.
He noted that the government currently has only two teachers on its payroll at the school, a number he said is insufficient to meet the needs of the growing student population.
As a result, community members have encouraged other qualified residents to volunteer their services to keep classes running.
But while the volunteer teachers have continued to serve, Zeon said they receive no financial compensation at the end of the month.
The community is therefore appealing to LAC to consider additional support for the volunteer teachers so they can remain committed to the school while the government works to address the staffing situation.
The renovation is being undertaken through a contractor hired by LAC and is expected to be completed by September, ahead of the opening of the 2026/2027 academic year.
For LAC, the project forms part of its corporate social responsibility commitment to communities within its operational areas. The company says it will continue working with communities to identify and support initiatives that contribute to education and community development.
The Wuarzon intervention also builds on LAC’s earlier contribution to the community more than two decades ago, when the company constructed the elementary school and handed it over to the government.
As construction gets underway, residents, teachers and students are looking forward to returning to a rehabilitated facility that can better support learning.
For Myumah, whose personal journey is deeply connected to the school, the renovation represents an opportunity to continue the work he began when he returned as a volunteer in 2008.
After years of teaching without government compensation, he remains determined to serve the children of his community.
“I love teaching,” Myumah said.
His commitment, coupled with LAC’s renewed investment in the school, is giving Wuarzon residents fresh hope that the institution can once again provide a more suitable environment for educating the community’s children.
