Do we always do right by our alma mater?

It was wonderful to be able to go back to my alma mater Musaeus College recently, specifically to attend a show organized to empower the welfare of the teachers and to be captivated by the magnificence of its brand new auditorium. The past pupils there did the school proud by volunteering to raise funds, as they always do, for a worthy cause.

It is a proud Sri Lankan tradition we are fond of - that of building and sustaining a strong relationship with the schools that nurtured and empowered us to become what we are today.

It is a tradition that old boys and past pupils take seriously and rightly so.

They are actively involved in new projects, raising the much-needed funds and improving the facilities made available. Often, the school authorities are grateful to the old boys and the past pupils for the support extended so graciously on a very large scale. Now all that is good and is to be emulated and admired but questions arise when some former pupils overstep the boundary lines.

Right motives

Being able to do something for your school is an obligation you happily engage in - but at the same time, it does not give us the authority or the power to either engage in school politics, canvass admissions or pressurize anyone to do things our way whether in sports, studies or giving preferences to either our children or those known to us. Giving something back to our alma maters may directly or indirectly influence the admission of our children but our conscience must be clear that we were encouraged to do it by the right motives.

Musaeus College, Colombo 7

We live in an age when it is so easy to do the right thing for the wrong reason. But what we must keep in mind is that the children are watching.

School authorities

They learn from watching our actions - and observing whether the words match our deeds. If they notice - and you can rarely lie to children of today who are extremely smart - that as an old boy or a past pupil, your actions only reflect selfish motives instead, they are not going to be very impressed with it. It will also blur their values when they are disappointed with our performance as their parents. Their growing minds are fragile and can easily be damaged by such actions.

Sometimes school authorities complain that they cannot bring in much needed change with the old boys getting in the way. The involvement of old boys and past pupils must be beneficial to the school and the generations of students but must be ideally balanced so that boundaries are developed and observed.

Then only we could set an example not only for our children but also for the multitudes of children who will walk out of the school empowered, just as we once did. Our contribution to the school is not merely to give us leverage with what’s going on in the school but also to give us the satisfaction of being able to do something for the school that played a major role in shaping us.

No school can rule out the support and empowerment provided by the old boys and the past pupils - a valuable asset for every school. But that asset should not lose its lustre nor become undervalued because of selfish or ulterior motives. The commitment given must be designed in such a way that it gives the school the ultimate authority to do things the way they should be done.

Hidden agenda

When it comes to sports, every school finds the contribution of the old boys valuable.

They raise funds, arrange for professional coaching opportunities and provide the much needed support. But that should not be used to ensure that the team slots are given on a favourite basis rather than based on talent and suitability. When we do that, everything we have done towards the welfare of the school loses its value and becomes yet another pawn with a hidden agenda.

When it concerns your school, you feel proud of its achievements, its facilities and the level of students it has produced. You must also be able to feel proud of what you have given back to your school not because you want your way but because it has been and will always be the right thing to do.