Parents reject substitute building for burned-down Jeddah school

Parents of pupils in the kindergarten and preparatory levels in Baraim Al-Watan Girls School in Jeddah’s Safa district, where a recent fire killed three teachers and injured 52 others, refuse to move their daughters to a substitute building. They claim the building is too far away from their homes, Al-Madinah newspaper reported Sunday. A meeting was held last Tuesday to discuss shifting the pupils in kindergarten and preparatory levels to another building. “Only 80 parents attended the meeting and they all rejected the alternative building,” school principal Abeer Mattar said. Mattar would convey the parents’ rejection to the Department of Girls’ Education in Jeddah. She said she was determined to go to the new building and run the school, even if only 50 students were left. “The parents who refuse to transfer their daughters to the new building can reimburse their fees,” she added. Parent Ahmad Al-Qahtani has two daughters in the elementary stage and a son in the kindergarten. He admitted the new building was well equipped and safe. His only objection to it is that the building is far away from his home and it would be difficult for him to take the children to the new building every day. Mutaz Hisham, another parent, said he was surprised that the school was able to find a nearby building for the elementary and intermediate levels while it could not do the same for the kindergarten and preparatory pupils. “The streets are crowded these days. It will be difficult to reach far away schools,” he said.