PRINCIPAL MORTGAGES HOUSING TO COVER KINDERGARTEN COST|幼兒園內半數弱勢童 財務困難園長賣房

At a Catholic private kindergarten in Kaohsiung, half of the students come from disadvantaged families. Even if they cannot pay tuition, it still lets the students continue to study, making steady losses. Fortunately, some kind-hearted people on Facebook launched donations. The boy's and girls' toilets are not properly equipped, the washbasin is too high and there is no mirror. The lack of basic equipment in this kindergarten caused it to lose the chance to receive a Ministry of Education subsidy that it applied for. Already in financial difficulties, the kindergarten is now even worse off. ==CHEN SHUN-FENG, Kindergarten Principal== Each class has one teacher and there are four teachers altogether. But because the classes aren't full, it's hard and we need to have two administrative staff too, so each month we lose about NT$100,000. Half of the students there are from vulnerable families and many cannot pay tuition. The principal pays out of her own pocket, but with the impact of fewer children, the school only has 34 students. However, there are four teachers, and two administrative staff, so wages are at least NT$210,000 a month. The kindergarten has been in debt over the years, and four years ago, the principal used her own home for a mortgage of NT$1.2 million to meet costs. She also applied for a Ministry of Education subsidy to improve the environment, but because the school did not comply with the provisions, she was disappointed. When the public found out about the plight of the kindergarten, some helped by making direct donations over the last few days. ==CHEN SHUN-FENG, Kindergarten Principal== Some people are in difficult circumstances and three or four can't pay the tuition fees for some time. When they have a little money, the parents give some and when they don't, we just let it build up. ==WU WEN-JING, Kaohsiung Bureau of Education, Kindergarten Section Chief== For items in the bathroom, there are some things which are not in line with our standards, so there is no way for them to apply to us for a grant. Kaohsiung Bureau of Education said that it encouraged early childhood education providers to improve their environment at their own expense before giving an audit for standards, and after the environment was improved it would then give out subsidies. The kindergarten was not be successful in applying this year, but with the concern from the public and some direct contributions, it promised undertake repair projects. The principal was moved to tears, and said the love that she had received would be given back to the children. TRANSLATED BY：CLARE LEAR 高雄一間天主教私立幼兒園，半數是弱勢孩子，即便繳不出學費，還是讓學生繼續就讀，虧損連連，園長還用自己的房屋貸款，來支付教職員費用，想申請補助款，卻因為不規定被取消，幸好有善心人士用臉書發動捐款。 男廁沒有小便斗，女廁沒有完整的私密空間；洗手檯太高、沒鏡子，這些缺失讓這間幼兒園想申請教育部的經費補助失敗，已經陷入財政困境的幼兒園雪上加霜。 ==幼兒園園長 陳舜鳳== 每1班都要1個老師 有4個老師 然後4個老師 因為你沒有滿班 它就沒有辦法 養那個行政人員呀 還有搭配的人員 所以我每個月平均虧損 大概10萬塊 園裡有半數學生是弱勢家庭孩子，碰上學生繳不出學費，園長就自掏腰包，但少子化衝擊學生越來越少，目前全校只有34名學生。但每個月4名老師、2名行政人員至少21萬的開銷，讓幼兒園幾年來都是財政赤字，4年前，園長用自己的房子貸款120萬來因應還是填補不了，才想申請教育部經費改善環境，但不符規定讓她希望落空，民眾知道幼兒園的困境，協助PO網，幾天來已經陸續有人捐款。 ==幼兒園園長 陳舜鳳== 有的人比較辛苦的 有三、四個 繳不起(學費)的 它就(學費)一直累積累積 他(家長)有錢就拿來繳 沒錢就是一直累積 ==高市教育局幼教科長 吳文靜== 在盥洗室的那一個部份 它們有一些指標 是不符合我們檢核項目 那所以就沒有辦法申請到 這一筆的補助 教育局表示，教育部鼓勵幼教業者先自費改善環境，才設下審核標準，等環境確認改善成功後提撥費用補助。幼兒園今年無法成功申請，但外界愛心不斷湧入，有人直接捐款，也有人承諾負起修繕工程，讓園長感動落淚，直說現在得到的愛，以後一定會更用心回饋出去。 記者 王柔婷 陳顯坤 高雄報導